


A Fleet of Chances

by meware



Category: Kakumeiki Valvrave | Valvrave the Liberator
Genre: How to build an empire 101, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-12-30
Updated: 2014-12-18
Packaged: 2018-01-06 18:15:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 23,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1110028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meware/pseuds/meware
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Balancing between putting together a crumbled nation and looking for a way to save his friend may just prove to be the most challenging task L-elf has ever taken upon himself. Not many are willing to live together with "monsters" and Haruto... well, time heals all wounds, but it won't heal him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue: Endings

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is a spawn of a sleepless night and frustration at the unsatisfactory ending of the series. First chapter will be up soon, but updates in the future will be very irregular. There may be grammar or spelling errors, and I would be grateful if you point them out.
> 
> **Warnings** for canon-typical violence, swearing and possible sexual content. Beware of **spoilers:** if you haven't watched all the episodes, I don't recommend reading this fic yet.
> 
> This is also available at FF.net.

”Yes, you’re… you’re my friend.”

Amidst his tears, that light punch Haruto threw surprised him. For a second there was hope, like there was light in Haruto’s eyes, but that hope died when he went limp in his arms. All stopped; his breathing, motions, thoughts, _his hope,_ and there he was cradling his lifeless friend.

Later, L-elf could reminiscence how it was a miracle he just didn’t crumble totally on the floor of the cockpit.  Lifetime of soldiering on carried him still. Everything had been taken from him, and left were only the ruins of a new country barely standing. Everything the country meant to him was gone. The girl he tried to save died saving him and the final battle against Cain was won with the prize of his friend’s life.

_Talk about hopeless._

The he realized the body he was holding wasn’t lifeless, totally. Haruto’s chest still moved, although slowly, as if he merely slept. For a second, L-elf was still. And then he mechanically moved his hand to Haruto’s neck and— _yes,_ there was a faint, slow pulse of a heart still beating.

“Hey!”

Relief was short-lived, when he tried to rouse Haruto.

“Wake up! Hey, Haruto, wake up!”

Nothing. He was alive but he wasn’t there. He didn’t answer to noise, movement or even slapping. Like in deep sleep. Like in coma. Like brain-dead.

But that meant he was still alive, at least. As long as he wasn’t totally brain-dead he could be woken up, right? Even though he wouldn’t remember anything. This wasn’t the end. This _couldn’t_ _be_ the end; they still had a contract to fulfill.

L-elf wiped his tears off. There was still work to do. He had another chance to build a country anew. To save his friend from the brink of the death.

_I wasn’t strong enough to save Lieselotte._

_I wasn’t strong enough to win this fight faster._

_But there’s Lieselotte’s dream. Our dream._

_And I’ll save you, Tokishima Haruto, no matter what._


	2. Forward momentum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Year to anyone celebrating it!
> 
> I'll keep the honorifics as they were in the show.

Akira was tired. She had done it, hacked every system she could get her hands on and showed the ugly truth to the world. The broadcast had shocked her too, since she had just heard the basic outline of the conspiracy from Haruto when he briefed everyone. The way the council had pinned blame on her schoolmates and caused a massacre was, in a way, a great plan, but she was just so angry and tired. She was angry at the council for killing her schoolmates and pitting them against each other. Angry at Shoko-chan, for the way she put her work ahead of her feelings.

And so, so angry at that bastard who killed Yamada. But Akira hadn't had a chance to extract revenge, when the enemy unit attacked one of his own. They fled the battle scene to the other side of Module 77, but she didn't pursue, figuring she was better help against that enemy Valvrave.

Now that the first unit had stopped moving after the fierce fight, she thought she would help Haruto to get to the module, and opened a comm channel to Hito.

"Y-you okay?"

No answer came immediately. Nor there was anyone sitting on the pilot's seat.

"Haruto?"

" _Renbokoji Akira. Help us to the module. I can't pilot this."_

L-elf floated to the view in the cockpit. He had the same Dorssian uniform he had had in that broadcast, Akira realized. It had to be the same, since one of the sleeves was covered in blood.

"Where's- "

" _Tokishima Haruto is dead,"_ was the blunt answer.

Akira froze. Not another fellow pilot.

" _Renbokoji! Can you move? Get us to the module!"_

"O-o-okay," Akira answered silently. Another comrade was dead. Thanks to that Dorssian and that fucking council and her uselessness. Silent tears fell down her cheeks. She didn't know how L-elf was suddenly in Hito or how Haruto had died or how the hell they were going to survive anymore.

She moved her Valvrave to grab Hito and took course towards the module.

* * *

Floating from the pilot's seat back to Haruto's side L-elf briefly wondered what had occurred during their battle in space. He hoped the module was okay enough to keep it as their momentary base. It's not like they had any choices.

And then there was the matter of Haruto. Truly, Tokishima still managed to irritate L-elf beyond belief even when he wasn't really there. He kept monitoring his physical state, which remained the same. He didn't still wake up, no matter how stimulated. If this condition kept and the body itself didn't die, L-elf had just to find a way to wake him. His highest hope was that he could recover Haruto's memories somehow, however unlikely it was. Runes were still an area of science that required more research.

There also was a chance that Haruto's body itself died. L-elf wondered if he had to get a freezer for him, and let out and near hysterical laugh. In that case Haruto was truly dead. He couldn't resurrect people! Dead or brain-dead, he was a lost hope, but considering the state the body was in that moment, he would wager Haruto was alive in there somewhere. He refused to believe otherwise.

" _L-elf?_ " Hesitant question came from the newly opened comm channel. Renbokoji had pulled herself together at some level and now just looked sorrowful.

"What is it?"

" _What happened?_ "

Now here is the cover story L-elf has to pull off. He can't reveal the truth of Tokishima's state and his plans concerning him. The idea to pretend he was dead was a surprise even to himself, but it would work. It would let him run the country and look for solutions behind the backs of the incompetent people the students majorly were. The research could be interpreted as human experimentation if revealed to the mass media, so it was very bad PR for an already battered nation.

"I jumped in from the module," he explained and shifted back to the pilot's seat to talk. "Tokishima Haruto jacked my body and we fought Cain, a Magius, who piloted that Valvrave unit. Apparently Tokishima ran out of runes."

He glanced at the screen where the AI was holding something—some _one_ in her arms. He would have to get an explanation from them too.

Renbokoji nodded slowly. _"What do we do now?"_

"Get to the module, regroup and take stock of everything. We need to also see who's alive," L-elf explained calmly. Most likely there was no one alive on the module, but there were students in the escape ships somewhere.

" _Yamada is dead,"_ Renbokoji replied quietly. _"And his Valvrave destroyed. Rukino-san is probably fine…"_ Quiet sniffles could still be heard. L-elf guessed she wasn't fine mentally. Not many would be in the same situation.

"Can you contact Rukino Saki?" Had they lost every pilot?

Renbokoji was quiet for a moment and L-elf could see her fiddle with the controls.

" _R-rukino-san?"_

" _Akira-chan! Are you okay?"_ Enthusiastic reply came from a new comm channel. _"I'm moving the module away. Have you contacted Haruto? I can't contact anyone, guess something was broken."_

"Connect her to this unit too," L-elf instructed Renbokoji and the comm channel opened. "Rukino Saki."

Rukino's expression was one of confusion. _"L-elf? When did—"_

"Regroup inside the module. We'll meet at the academy. Tokishima Haruto is no longer with us." He was forward enough to stun Rukino. Renbokoji could deal with her better and save him headache, so he closed both channels and lifted himself towards Tokishima.

First, he had to get a professional medic or doctor to check if Haruto was brain-dead. Someone who could also keep quiet of the matter. His best bet at the moment was one of the remaining teachers. Kibukawa Takumi most likely could identify the state of the body, but he was no medical doctor. If it was some sort of a coma, L-elf would have to get equipment to keep the body running. And if it was runes Haruto needed, he would need to acquire that special equipment that was onboard of the _Phantom_. So someone knowledgeable from the Magius Council could be required.

Then there were the scientists involved in the Valvrave project. They had to know about runes, since the units ran on them. They must know something about the pilots and how they handled runes. He would also have to ask Kibukawa what he knew about the students, since they were somehow designed to pilot the Valvrave units. It was a shame that he and his former comrades killed most of the personnel when they first infiltrated the module.

And _then_ there was the little matter of a _nation_. There were probably only fewer than 50 students alive, including the Prime Minister Sashinami Shoko. Their module, their only sanctuary had taken damage and the school, which had acted as a governmental building, was filled with dead bodies. They had a lot to do. He had to make everyone understand his plans for a united country, where everyone could live, regardless of their immortality.

* * *

Haruto was dead.

That thought, that crushing thought, crept somewhere inside Saki and squeezed her insides with claws. They swore not to give up, no matter what, but Saki found herself willing to do just that right there. Tears were dripping down her cheeks and sobs wracked her body. She released her control of her unit and just gripped her head tightly. The module and her unit stopped moving.

How did it come to this? Haruto seemingly kept his promise; he hadn't given up, even when death was the only course for him. Akira-chan had explained what she knew to Saki. Rune depletion… at least he hadn't suffered, had he? He just lost memories one by one. Everything, from meeting her and kissing her and… well, everything. Just to make sure his precious Shoko-san survived.

Fury flared. _Shoko_ , his childhood friend, who rejected Haruto when the curse was revealed. Rejected him when he wanted to explain and reconcile, according to Akira-chan. Shoko-san didn't deserve Haruto's loyalty, she didn't deserve anything! Saki was there for Haruto, and—

Well. Fat lot had she helped. He was _dead._

She punched the dashboard in anger. Soon it subsided and shame and guilt settled in. She couldn't fault Shoko-san, not really. Who wasn't shocked when they realized their friends were immortal? And the way Haruto had to feed wasn't exactly human, either.

Saki sighed deeply and slowly took the controls back into her hands. She wouldn't be fine, for a while, but she had to be strong enough to protect everybody, even when they had turned their backs on her.

Overheat level still acceptable, she flew her unit to the other side of the module. That enemy unit, Kirschbaum, which had remained close to her, followed. It most likely was one of those old comrades of L-elf that had left Dorssia because of the recent events. She disregarded it and tried to see if Akira-chan and unit one were close. Seeing them, she took course towards the module's entry point.

She wasn't fine. But she would be.

* * *

Feeling gravity settle in, L-elf glanced up and saw they finally were inside the module. Renbokoji was dragging the first unit towards the academy, which was in a bad condition. Windows were broken, walls riddled with bullet marks and bodies were littered along the floor and the ground inside and outside. Thankfully, it seemed the Allied Forces had abandoned the whole module.

Renbokoji placed Hito on the ground so that L-elf could easily jump out of the unit. But here was the difficult point: he had to hide Haruto. If the students wanted to hold a funeral, he would need to produce another body from somewhere. Lies about the body destroying itself or something close to it were not going to work, since they knew what happened to runeless bodies, as in Nobi Marie's case.

He had to create a distraction.

L-elf opened the hatch and stepped out of the unit. Fresh air was welcomed. Predictably, Renbokoji didn't step out of her Valvrave and just settled the unit down. Soon, Carmilla flew into view from somewhere close to the entry points of the module. Behind it, a Kirschbaum was following. A-drei, probably, if one could assume from the unique coloring of the unit.

Carmilla descended. Its frontal legs had taken a lot of damage, but the unit seemed to work even without them. The unit landed very carefully and Rukino Saki stepped out. She was distraught, although she tried to hide it behind confidence. L-elf could feel something like sympathy towards her, but now was not the time.

The Kirschbaum landed close to them. A-drei hopped out, taking his helmet off after he was standing on solid ground.

"What are you planning, L-elf?" A-drei inquired. The question was somewhat nonchalant, but it also held a serious tone in it.

"Revolution," L-elf deadpanned. A-drei smirked in reply.

"Is Haruto… is Haruto's body inside his unit?" Rukino cut in, hesitant in her words.

L-elf couldn't let her close to it. Preferable was she didn't see it at all. "About that. We leave his body here. We're going to hold a mass funeral, are we not? "

Rukino visibly shuddered at the idea of all the dead students and glanced at the academy grounds. It wasn't a pretty picture. It was the bloody cost of lies. The academy would be a grim reminder for a long time for everyone.

"Rukino, you have to bring me up to speed. What happened after the broadcast was cut?"

She told him what she had gathered from the news report she had had open while moving the module. Allied Forces was no longer allied. ARUS withdrew from the contract and had not made any moves after. Dorssia was in uproar, on the brink of a civil war; unrest spread like a wildfire.

L-elf knew from experience those uproars would be smothered effectively. So effectively no riots were possible without the people getting hit by enforcement. Enforcement that meant rioting people blown up with precision strikes, which later were blamed on an enemy, namely ARUS. Or New JIOR, which was most likely going to get the most of the bullshitting claims.

L-elf thought for minute and came to a decision. "Three ships managed to escape. We should contact them and tell them to return," L-elf said and turned to Renbokoji's unit. "Let me in."

"Wait a minute, Shoko-san is not going to listen to us!" Rukino exclaimed and threw out her hands exaggeratedly. "As far as she is concerned, we're monsters! And she doesn't trust _you_ anymore."

Sashinami was naïve. She could be made to trust. He regarded Rukino coolly. "I'm sure I can convince her. Let me in, Renbokoji." Before going over to the unit, he turned to A-drei.

"And just what are you going to do, A-drei?" L-elf could see Rukino also turning towards the Dorssian in curiosity.

A-drei was holding his helmet tightly and looking at the roughened academy building. "Are you really immortal monsters?" He asked, keeping his gaze at the school. "Because I see many dead bodies. I don't see them moving anymore."

"Only the pilots are blessed," came a reply from the opened hatch of the sixth unit. Surprised, both L-elf and Rukino turned towards Renbokoji. He hadn't expected Renbokoji to actually let him in without a struggle, much less to start talking to a stranger like A-drei.

"Blessed? More like cursed," Rukino spat bitterly. "The pilots are immortal to a point but not the other students."

"We're… we are touched by God. That's what Aina-san said, back …then," Akira said quietly. "I want to believe we're not cursed. We're not!"

The quiet but fierce admission seemed to placate Rukino. "Blessed or cursed, it was still innocent blood that those Allied Forces spilled here. We may be monsters. But not them," Rukino nodded towards the school solemnly.

"So the Magius are behind your massacre and behind the rot that is left of my motherland. I barely recognize it anymore. And the way they put the world against you completely…" A-drei was part of the ruthless Dorssian military, but L-elf knew he still had morals and a heart.

"I fear a revolution is not enough. Not anymore. We need a new start," A-drei turned towards L-elf, "and what better place to start than a whole new nation?"

This time L-elf felt like smirking. "Help us, and we'll help you with certain pests." Even Rukino cracked something resembling a smile at that. A-drei walked closer and offered his hand to L-elf, which he grabbed and shook firmly.

"I'll convince Sashinami to change her mind," L-elf repeated to Rukino and went over to the sixth unit. Renbokoji dropped down and planted herself to the pilot's seat and began connecting to the ship she knew Sashinami was on.

Finally something was going better than planned. Now he just had to win Sashinami over and find a place to keep Haruto in.

* * *

"Prime Minister, we've got a call," Iori hollered from the control room of the ship. Shoko was tending an unconscious student and changing the bandage of a bullet wound.

Shoko felt heavy. She had to keep brave face for everyone's sake. Nothing was right anymore, her friends dead or chased away because of hysteria. She felt like she could just collapse, legs crumbling and just lying on the floor. It was the weight of her actions, of what she needed to do as a leader. That weight was so heavy on her shoulders. She felt like sleeping a century, away from this nightmare.

"I'll be there," she replied and finished tightening the bandage. It was all she could do to her schoolmates. She was powerless, even in her position.

Shoko shook her head and kicked herself up from the floor and made her way to the control room. "Who is it?" She asked as soon as the door to the room opened.

Iori pushed a button and L-elf's face appeared on the bigger screen. "Prime Minister. Are you well?"

Shoko could have puked right there. There was the best strategist they had and whom Shoko had sold in her struggle for freedom, calling her… from Valvrave unit six?

L-elf probably saw from her expression what she was thinking and went straight to business. "Where are you?"

"We're close to the original place of Module 77," she answered hesitantly.

"Good. Return to the module. We'll regroup at the academy grounds. Allied Forces won't bother us anytime soon."

That she could just guess from the news. As good as returning would feel there would also be resistance on the ship. Everyone was scared, many were hurt and blame for it was placed on the pilots. Decision lied on her shoulders, on top of everything else. Shoko had to think the most beneficial resolution to all. Was returning the best choice?

"If you want to treat the students better, you should return," L-elf continued. "I believe you also want explanations."

"Who else is there?" Shoko had to appear determined.

"The pilots and an ally," he left it there cryptically. And his face betrayed nothing.

Was it a trap? Maybe he wanted revenge for selling him back to the place he left? The thought crept in, but again Shoko shook her head. Haruto wasn't that petty. He wouldn't hurt Shoko or let L-elf do it. If he was himself anymore. If he had given in to—

_No, he's not a monster!_

Shoko was fully determined now. "We'll come back."

Next to her Iori wore an appalled expression and opened her mouth to protest, but Shoko cut her speech before it even started.

"Let's go so all the students can get a place to rest," she addressed everyone in the control room. "Contact other ships and take course to Module 77."

Few mutters could be heard, but soon enough they opened new comm channels and gave orders.

"I'll send units four and six to accompany you," L-elf said and cut the call.

Shoko had more confidence now. They would get to relative safety, get treatment and maybe mend broken friendships. She would have to use the advice Nanami-sensei had given her earlier.

* * *

"How many Familiars do we have left?" L-elf asked Rukino as soon as he had stepped outside of unit six.

"I saw three of them in the hangar," Rukino replied. She had sat down on her unit's arm and was still looking at the school. She looked like she was in deep thought and not fully present.

"You and Renbokoji Akira will go and meet the escape ships halfway and guard them. Take the Familiars with you."

While Dorssia was fighting itself, ARUS might not let them rest. A surprise attack fell still into the realm of possibilities. It's what L-elf would have done: wait for the enemy to return (which was inevitable, with hurt students nowhere to go) and then launch an attack capable of wiping out the rest of the so called monsters. There was only A-drei's Kirschbaum left for defense, but ARUS would assume no one was at the module anymore. That's what L-elf was counting on.

And by sending both Valvrave units, he won himself time. A-drei would have questions, but it wasn't like he would tell the rest of the students, if L-elf even answered to him. He had time to hide Haruto's body and loot the _Phantom_. It wasn't right, that he had to use all those humans hooked up to those rune-transfer machines, but if it was the only way to save his friend, he would do it.

Rukino seemed to consider his order for a second, and slowly put her helmet back on. Taking a hold of her unit to climb it, she stopped, back towards L-elf.

"…what's the point?"

L-elf felt irritated. Rukino generally was a rebellious spirit, but when she got a job, she also saw it to the end properly. If she questioned his orders privately or between other pilots, he didn't know, but she hadn't openly challenged him before during important missions. He didn't have time for this.

"To get the students to safety." L-elf said while gritting his teeth.

Rukino was silent and still for a moment, but seemed to gather herself and climbed into Carmilla. L-elf didn't see her expression, so he couldn't really tell what she was thinking. He assumed it was the supposed death of Tokishima Haruto that affected her, but he hadn't assumed it would affect her so strongly. Either they were closer than he initially thought or something entirely else was gnawing at Rukino.

He couldn't question her further when she closed the hatch of her unit and booted up. Renbokoji prepared her unit in similar fashion and they both took flight to the nearest hangar.

Now L-elf had his only chance. He saw A-drei raise his eyebrows in his peripheral vision but pointedly ignored him and set forward to the first unit.

When inside, he first made a check on Haruto's condition. It remained the same – deep breaths and the slow beat of his heart were still present. L-elf took a holding grip of Haruto's torso and lifted him onto his left shoulder, so that Haruto lied on him on his stomach. The pilot suit added some extra weight and L-elf found himself moving more carefully. He took note of the AI on the screen, flying around with that… _guy_ she had held in her arms earlier.

Maneuvering himself outside, he saw A-drei had come closer and wore a confused expression. "Is that—"

"My right arm, yes," L-elf answered curtly, referring to their discussion at gunpoint back when he had taken control of the school. "I need you to keep quiet about this. Officially, Tokishima Haruto is dead," he explained and adjusted his hold on Haruto. "But somehow he's alive. He just needs to be woken up."

"Officially dead? Why can't you reveal his state to others? And how is he 'somehow alive'?" A-drei looked unimpressed and just more confused.

"I'll explain the pilots and their condition later," L-elf stated and started walking towards the abandoned city.

"No, explain now! I know they can… hijack a body, and basically can't die," A-drei insisted and fell into step next to L-elf.

He assumed it was Rukino who had given an explanation while in captivity. It certainly explained how A-drei knew it wasn't L-elf himself who had shot his eye, and why he had released Rukino in the first place. It made things easier for him. He just had to consider what he could tell A-drei about Haruto.

"He jacked my body, so we had a better chance against Colonel Cain. After the battle, Tokishima most probably ran out of runes. Runes are information particles; memory, DNA and such. They fuel the Valvrave units and they can be acquired from humans the best," L-elf explained while walking. "In other words, Tokishima is a kind of a vampire. He needs to feed on humans and then the runes he acquires are distributed to all Valvrave units. Because he hadn't fed in a while, the runes used as fuel were his own. In the end, he lost his memories."

A-drei seemed to contemplate for a minute. "Why can't he be woken up then?"

"That's what I need to find out. I think he's in a coma-like state," L-elf replied and glanced at A-drei. "I have my reasons for hiding this. I want you to keep this to yourself and help me with this matter, when I need it," L-elf requested. He hoped A-drei wouldn't need more convincing. Relying on their odd friendship seemed like his best course of action.

"Of course," A-drei replied firmly, like they never had had a falling out. L-elf assumed he still had questions, but he was willing get more detailed explanation later. The thought of that trust put L-elf at ease more. He had someone to rely on this matter; best of all, A-drei had connections he didn't have, and was willing to help him in the time of need.

Speaking of connections. "What happened to X-eins?" L-elf suddenly asked A-drei.

A-drei replied by closing his eyes and shaking his head. He had died, then. It was probably that same Kirschbaum unit he saw blow up when he had run to Haruto's Valvrave unit.

"I fought Q-vier," he also admitted, sounding genuinely regretful. And because it was A-drei who was left standing, it meant Q-vier had died too. L-elf also felt a pang of regret resonate somewhere inside him. Former or not, they had still been his comrades since the beginning in Karlstein Agency.

L-elf also shook his head at A-drei. "You had to," he concluded, and marched steadily to the downtown of the module. He knew the module had a small clinic – it would have to suffice.

* * *

Saki was lost. It was the only label for the feelings she had. Haruto, her guiding light, wasn't there anymore. All she had left was her friends – even them, limited, because she couldn't trust everyone. She couldn't trust Shoko-san after she had announced her policy when it came to the pilots.

Flying in the middle of space towards their determined meeting point Saki had time to think. Too much time, in her opinion. Too many questions were left open, like why had Shoko-san changed her opinion on the pilots so radically. All she could conclude was that she had found out they were 'blessed', as Akira-chan had put it. But the rejection was so unlike the usually tolerant Shoko-san.

She had to ask for a second opinion and opened a comm channel to unit six. "Akira-chan?"

She nodded in response on the small screen.

"What exactly happened at the school?" _What the hell was Shoko-san thinking?_

Akira-chan was quiet and frowning, probably thinking where to start. She didn't look well, like she could collapse anytime.

_"T-they showed your…"_ _execution_ went unsaid, _"live. And there was a journalist team at the school, who somehow found the Phantom we had hijacked… a-and then the ARUS president blamed Shoko-chan and they just started shooting everyone and—"_

"It's okay, it's okay!" Saki tried to calm her down. Akira-chan was holding back tears and panicking. She was going to hyperventilate at this rate. "Calm down, it's okay. Why don't you tell me about the… the _Phantom_ , was it?"

Akira-chan hiccupped but tried to control her breathing. She was silent while trying to collect herself, clearly living out the horrible memories.

_"…it's a ship. A Magius ship. They have humans inside it and, and some kind of a machine that collects runes from them. They—that journalist team, I mean – found it and they showed footage of it live, too,"_ she finally told her.

And it caused panic. It caused a massacre. Saki felt _sick_. The whole school, the _module_ was set up as monsters to the world and it prompted military response. An alliance dedicated to decimating them. And nothing but innocent people just trying to survive were killed. What kind of sick bastards could launch such a campaign?

_And_ a machine that collects runes. How was that possible? What was the point of it, even? _Probably so that those Magius could feed without a hassle,_ Saki thought and fought against the bile in her throat.

They were their true enemies. At least they were exposed, so they couldn't pull the strings behind the world's stage so effectively now.

While thinking, she realized they had reached the coordinates for the meeting. She and Akira-chan stopped the Valvraves.

_"15 minutes to contact,"_ Akira-chan said quietly. Saki nodded at her and tried to relax but found herself unable to do so. Too much was on her mind.

How are they going to live on in a world set against their existence?

* * *

The front door of the clinic was unlocked. The place had been evacuated in a hurry, so the front information desk was a mess. Some chairs were upturned and other miscellaneous stuff was lying around. The clinic was small – it could receive ER patients, stabilize them and then send them to a more advanced hospital in a bigger module. But it had no means of sustaining patients for a long time, save for a few ones. It was commendable how they had managed to get the patients evacuated. But it meant fewer beds and next to no medical equipment, especially when the students had looted the place. Only three moveable beds were left.

L-elf frowned at the realization, but chose the room that could be defended the easiest. He lowered Haruto's immobile body the bed inside the room and set him so he was comfortable, if he even felt it.

A-drei had followed him and was now on the doorway of the room looking at him curiously. L-elf had explained the Magius, runes and the plan that had made the world their enemy in detail to him on the way to the clinic. But he still hadn't told why he was hiding the body. A-drei didn't need to know, and thankfully, hadn't asked. Odd friendship indeed.

"Help me get his pilot suit off. I have to prepare a body to show for everyone," he asked A-drei. He nodded and they carefully extracted the suit, so the body had nothing but the slim under suit on it. He knew the red suit on someone similar looking would fool everyone who didn't take a too close look at it. It meant he had to keep an eye on the body and take care of its funeral.

L-elf folded the suit on his arm and made a final check on the body. He didn't know if Haruto could sustain himself on his own, and would he need runes or more solid nutrition. That's why he had to inspect the _Phantom_ to see if he could hook Haruto up on it.

"You should return to Dorssia," he abruptly said to A-drei.

He was thinking the same. "I agree, but I need to know what you're doing."

"I have a plan," L-elf answered stubbornly. A-drei looked like he was going to protest, but let the matter go.

"I know, but fine, be cryptic. I'll go back and see what information I can dig up." A-drei would make a fine spy for them. He was probably planning to try and get the royal family back on the top, but he would need help for the Magius hunting. That's where L-elf and the module would come in.

"Could you get your hands on those transportable medical beds?" was his next question. A-drei knew why.

"I can, but how could I get it here?"

"Send it to Module 19. Then send a message to me, and we'll know what shipment to intercept," L-elf explained. Module 19 was the biggest Dorssian module. There were lots of packages going in and out, so it wouldn't look out of place.

"You really have a plan for everything," A-drei said good-naturedly. They had an agreement.

Besides the obvious reasons, L-elf knew now why he had so suddenly decided to hide the truth. He wanted to get even with the world that had played with him for so long.

There was no better way of achieving that, than by doing the impossible: saving his friend while building a nation never foreseen.


	3. Convalescence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s nice to know there are readers interested in this.
> 
> Midori Akashi is that green-haired girl, who had some lines in the finale, if you didn’t know her name.

"Two Valvraves on the radar, units four and six," Midori reported to Shoko. "They're hailing us. Do I connect?"

"Please do," Shoko nodded at her.

Akira-chan appeared on the screen, looking like she needed a good night's sleep. Shoko felt the same, but she put on a determined face.

"Thank you for your assistance. Please escort us to the module," Shoko kept her voice steady and her words formal. She had to, otherwise she might just start pleading for forgiveness from Akira-chan, very unlike the Prime Minister she was supposed to be.

Akira-chan looked like she might cry.  _Please don't,_  Shoko pleaded mentally,  _because I would too._

Her only response was to nod and cut the call. Shoko was saved from hurting her friend more (if they were friends, anymore) and she took the seat beside Midori. Midori seemed conflicted, unsure of anything, and idly fiddled with the ship controls. Shoko shared that feeling and let out a sigh.

When everyone was safe and getting better treatment, Shoko would have to consider the future in detail. She figured her first course of action would be talking. It felt wrong – it  _was wrong_ – to turn away her friends like that. She had to talk things through with anyone involved: Haruto and the other pilots, probably L-elf and the students, like Nanami-sensei had instructed her. Then they would decide the matters between all the ministers. Worry ate at her, apprehension at confronting everyone. So many things had gone wrong in a matter of hours and she was supposed to fix it all, guide everyone through difficult times. She  _had to._

"Prime Minister," Iori-san interrupted her thoughts when she entered the room. She looked down on the floor and was considering her words, most likely.

"I know. Let's… let's just get to safety, okay? We can't do anything else right now," Shoko loathed admitting it aloud, but everyone knew the situation was anything but stable. There was no true safety. There hadn't been, for a long time.

"I know! But…" Iori took a hesitant breath, "what if it's trap?" She looked at Midori, who in turn nodded. They both turned to look at Shoko in question.

"I thought of that too. We don't have a choice. It was L-elf who made the call, and no one could make him speak even at gunpoint, and the Valvraves are functional enough to escort us," Shoko explained with a serious voice.

"But the Valvraves could shoot us now, when were defenseless!" Iori exclaimed somewhat panicked.

"They won't. They defended us earlier, when we had to evacuate, remember?" As soon as she had finished, Shoko realized at some level that Iori was looking for excuses and stalling them. She couldn't bring herself to be angry at her.

"But—"

"Would you stop! You heard her, we don't have  _any_  choice," Midori scolded Iori. She clearly didn't share Shoko's sentiment. Midori wasn't that upset, but her words held enough spite to halt Iori, who looked somewhat ashamed.

"I know," was the quiet reply. Shoko relaxed when she noted that a fight wasn't going to start. She got up, went to Iori and promptly hugged her tightly.

"I know you're worried and angry, but we'll cope. You have us," Shoko told against Iori's shoulder. Iori was still for a moment, but soon hugged desperately back while letting the tears fall.

 

* * *

A-drei was preparing for a lift-off. L-elf had made him carry any useful medical stuff from the clinic back to the school pre-emptively, so no one had any reason to visit the clinic anymore, leaving that Tokishima alone.

He didn't really know what L-elf was thinking. The whole mess concerning his defection and the guest of building a nation he had took upon accomplishing were one huge question for him, but since L-elf didn't willingly elaborate, he let him be. Curiosity was controlling his thoughts, however. Trusting L-elf to tell what he needed to know, but still wondering what was motivating him, he had decided to corner him at a better time.

Especially when L-elf had told him a lot during their way to the clinic, but had still left out how his cousin Lieselotte fit in to the picture. Dorssian propaganda said she had died of sickness, but he had enough connections to know those news were full of bullshit. And he didn't even need those connections to know it. Something else had happened there, with the students escaping from Earth miraculously and Lieselotte dying mysteriously.

A-drei frowned and held his helmet in front of him. He had a plan for returning to Dorssia – he was kidnapped by a trap sprung by two Valvraves. The students wanted information, but simple interrogation had no effect on him. And because some poor students can't stomach torturing anyone, and because cannon fodder like him had no value as a hostage, they let him go with his Kirschbaum, which was no use to students with Valvraves. His superiors would accept his story and let him continue operating.

The royalists would need help with seizing control of Dorssia. Granted, they could work beneath the excuse of unrest, but the hardest part was getting rid of the Magius. There was a council of 101 in control, but how far their influence reached, they could only guess. He knew a list of the names was uploaded to the Wired, courtesy of L-elf, but the list was no use if the ones on it went underground. He had to get this information to the royalists so they could start unearthing the deep Magius roots.

A-drei would participate gladly.

Determined, he put on his helmet, climbed into the Kirschbaum and booted up. He saw L-elf stop before entering the school building. He glanced up, as if knowing he was being watched, and nodded at A-drei.

He let out a chuckle and took off. He had a medic to contact and a medical bed to ship.

 

* * *

The school had started to smell. L-elf was no stranger to a large amount of bodies, but the smell of decay and blood was enough for him to put a sleeved arm on his lower face. The students were going to have very hard time getting everyone out and possibly cleaning the building. Funeral was most likely going to be held next to the graveyard which had formed after the first attack.

He had to find a brown-haired male, who had the same body proportions as Haruto. The school contained easily over a hundred bodies, so there was a good chance he found someone of resemblance. Stepping over the bodies littered on the hallway floor he took a good look at everyone, and peered inside every room he encountered.

He had luck on the second floor. This poor boy slumped over a desk on his back was only an inch taller than Haruto, had short brownish hair and otherwise didn't look too different. Someone who had known Haruto longer than a week would realize he wasn't the real one, but L-elf wasn't going to let them that close. Carefully he inspected the boy's injuries. Seemed like he was shot in the torso thrice, but his head was unhurt, which was enough. He took a firm grip and lowered the body from the desk on the floor and set to work.

Moments later, he had taken unnecessary clothes like the student uniform jacket and zipped up the pilot suit. It didn't him as well as it had fit Haruto, but it would do. Last he put the helmet on the body and checked his work. It wasn't idiot-proof, but he lifted the body onto his shoulder like he had carried Haruto earlier. Checking that he hadn't gotten more blood on himself, satisfied he made his way out of the building.

While outside, he thought where he would keep the body double. He had told Rukino Saki that they were keeping him at the school and later burying him alongside the other students, but now he wasn't so sure. If he put him back inside Hito, he could just tell the news of his death and bring the body outside only when it was time for a burial. Deciding to do the latter he went back to the first unit.

Inside he set the body to the floor, settling him so his face was turned downwards. That way he could let people ogle at the body from the hatch opening without letting anyone touch it. His work done, he took out his phone from a pocket and glanced at the clock. He had roughly half an hour left before the ships returned. Enough time to inspect the  _Phantom_. Before going outside he looked at the screen on the dashboard. The AI still had someone with… it. Her.

"Who are you?" he asked forwardly. Floating around the screen, the blue-haired entity came closer.

"You're not the pilot," the thing answered scornfully. He probably referred to when Haruto had used his body in that fight.

"No, I'm not, but I'm the one in charge of them," he told.

The thing was quiet and frowning at him, but then the female one barged next to him. "It's you!"

"Yes," he nodded. At least he had talked with this one. "Do you even have name? Valvrave? Hito?"

"I'm Pino!" she answered cheerfully. "And this is my big brother, Prue!"

 _Big brother? They were siblings?_ "…alright. Where did Prue come from? You weren't there earlier," he asked them.

"I was in Cain's Valvrave," Prue admitted, answering only because his sister trusted L-elf, he assumed. He didn't know how he had gotten inside this Valvrave and didn't have time to care. Prue was far less trusting, spoke more coherently and regarded him with disdain. He probably knew a lot more than his sister.

"Why is Tokishima Haruto still alive, even after running out of runes?"

Pino raised a forefinger on her jaw as in deep thought, Prue looking aside seriously. Great, either they didn't know the most important thing or weren't willing to tell.

"…don't know," Pino said quietly while shaking her head. Prue was silent for a moment longer before speaking.

"It might be because he's unnatural," he finally stated.

L-elf raised his eyebrows. "Unnatural how? Because he's one of the students at Sakimori Academy?"

Prue shook his head. "No, unnatural… he's closer to being a true Magius than the other pilots are," was his cryptic reply. "I can't really explain it." Pino had closed her eyes and was nodding her head in agreement.

Conclusion: they knew nothing of importance. L-elf tch'ed in annoyance, opened the hatch and stepped outside.

He had to make a quick trip to the  _Phantom_  while he still had time.

 

* * *

The module came into view. There had been no serious incidents on the journey, but Saki was alert. Akira-chan had contacted her once about a fleet belonging to ARUS, close to the meeting point, but by someone's grace they didn't attack or follow them. The sudden flyby had reminded Saki of the danger still present and she had been tense since.

Saki agreed with Akira-chan that they should remain in space until all the ships had boarded the module. She hoped L-elf had prepared some way of convincing Shoko-san to let them stay in the module, too.

She was afraid to hope for anything more.

Idly, she wondered what A-drei was going to do. She was grateful to him, for listening to her explanation and letting her go from her prison. His meeting with L-elf on the module earlier had reassured her momentarily that they still had help, had allies.

Finally reaching their home, Saki maneuvered Carmilla to the other side of the entrance at the bottom side. Someone, probably L-elf, opened the doors and one by one, the ships slid inside. Akira-chan had been flying behind the ships, and after she was in, Saki followed. They had had to use one of the Familiars on the way, so they had two left, until more was made.

Behind Saki the doors closed. The three ships found docking points for each one. Saki knew she should help moving the injured ones further inside, but wondered if they even wanted help from the likes of her. Akira-chan seemed to have the same doubts and didn't move.

She knew she had to get her unit repaired, with the frontal legs so badly melted and communications nearly broken. It was a miracle if they could get the repairs done with limited resources and knowledge. Otamaya and Kibukawa-sensei would help her, but few persons could only get so much done.

And who will become the next pilot of the first unit? Saki didn't like the thought of anyone but Haruto doing it, but they had to appoint someone, when the Valvraves were their best –  _only_  – means of defense. The pilot would have the biggest responsibility, with them needing to feed. If what Kibukawa-sensei had told her was believable, only the students of the Sakimori Academy could pilot the Valvraves. He hadn't elaborated why, except by vaguely mentioning a military program. But it certainly explained why someone like L-elf hadn't taken a hold of a Valvrave.

With students slowly coming out of the ships Saki decided she would try her luck and went to dock Carmilla. Akira-chan followed her.

 

* * *

"Please walk to the surface if can! If you can't walk, wait for someone to come to you. We'll get everyone out, so please don't panic!" Shoko hollered loudly. The moving was slow, but at least they weren't in a hurry, like they had been when attacked. The uninjured and some of the less injured were helping the unfortunate students to go ahead. It was easy here, in the gravityless area, but up in the module proper they would need beds with heels and wheelchairs, if there were any.

"Prime Minister!" It was Satomi, who floated from another ship closer to her. "Please let Akira stay here, at least! She doesn't have any other place to go to," he pleaded.

Shoko understood his concern. "She can stay," she told him, "and I was thinking we should let the pilots explain their side of the story."

Her words were a visible relief to him. "Thank you," he said and kicked himself back towards the ship he came from.

Shoko took a glance to see how many students were left. Not too many, and she decided she would sought out Haruto. She made her way to the control room of the entry point, were she knew someone had to be controlling the doors and the airlock.

Reaching the door to the room, she wasn't surprised to see the former Dorssian waiting for her on the other side. "Sashinami," he acknowledged with his ever serious face.

Shoko nodded at him and clasped her hands in front of her. She went into this head first, once again without a plan of any kind, and only now was thinking her words through.

"First, thank you," she said while looking at the ground, "for the broadcast. And for letting us come back." She bowed, like the JIORan custom was.

"No need," he answered shortly. Shoko raised herself straight and finally met his eyes properly. "I have news. And you'll want to know what really happened. Tend the students and we'll have a talk at 1900 hours, with everybody present," he stated.

Shoko nodded, a bit lost and wondering about the supposed news. She would meet Haruto later, at least in the evening if not earlier. "What are you going to do?"

"Now I'm monitoring the radars. How many students are alive?"

Shoko grimaced. "…37. Four died because of their injuries," it hurt to admit how powerless she had been. She couldn't protect or save everyone.

L-elf's face remained impassive, like the body count didn't concern him. "If there are uninjured ones available, sent them here. Or anyone who can stand and stay awake will do," he instructed.

Shoko nodded again. "I'll send Otamaya-kun and Renbokoji-san. Maybe Takahi-san, Iori or Midori…" she listed the ones she could remember were fine.

"Otamaya Yuusuke needs to help Rukino Saki. Get Renbokoji Satomi and Ninomiya Takahi here to monitor things at minimum," he added. "Have you seen Kibukawa Takumi?"

"Kibukawa-sensei was helping somebody who couldn't walk," Shoko answered, puzzled at why he would need the teacher.

L-elf nodded. "Use the girls' dormitory. I cleaned up the building." Meaning it was the only place without bodies lying around. "I have taken everything of value from the clinic downtown and delivered them to the dormitory, so you have no need for looting."

"Thank you," Shoko repeated and felt herself brighten up. They would get through.

"And stay away from the first unit," he added as an afterthought. "It started an automated self-destruct sequence in response to the damage it took. I managed to deactivate it, but it might start itself again, if handled improperly."

L-elf had an infuriating way of telling serious matters with a nonchalant voice. Shoko was shocked and it probably showed on her face. "But why're keeping it here then?" she asked with a raised voice.

"We'll move it when we have more time. Just don't touch it and we'll be fine," he asserted. "Go and retrieve the persons I mentioned. I have to talk with Kibukawa," he finished and went out of the door leading inside the module.

Time, time, time. They never had time, had they? Shoko sighed and went to make an announcement.

 

* * *

"— _and Ninomiya Takahi, please report to hangar control 2. I repeat: please stay at the girls' dormitory for the time being. There is food and medical supplies at the site. We are holding an open meeting at seven o'clock this evening in front of the dormitory building. And please avoid the first Valvrave unit that is close to the school. Seriously, stay away from it!"_

The announcement made by Sashinami seemed like it was written by L-elf or something. Takumi knew Sashinami didn't plan that far and so detailed by herself.

He had so far helped two students who were unable to walk by themselves, having gotten shot at their legs. He was returning to the ships when L-elf came by and stopped him, claiming he needed his 'expertise'. He wanted to help the students first, but when L-elf insisted his matter was much more urgent, he relented and followed him. Seemed like he was getting led to the town part of the module with hurried steps. What could be more urgent than shot victims? It must be something important, because L-elf wasn't the type to exaggerate.

But then again he played people like fiddles when he wanted to accomplish something, so if Takumi was feeling dread, nobody could blame him.

L-elf kept to himself until they arrived at the only clinic of the module after a while of walking. He showed himself inside and made way to a specific room. Takumi noted he knew the route and didn't even glance around in question, which meant he had been there before.

They reached a patient room and L-elf switched the lights on from a panel next to the door. There, on the bed, lied Tokishima Haruto, glad only in a plain pilot's undersuit. L-elf went over to the body and checked it for signs of life. Apparently satisfied with the results, he turned to Takumi, who had gotten stuck to the doorway in surprise.

"Can you tell if he's in a coma?"

Ah. He had assumed Takumi could examine Tokishima-kun the best. Takumi shook himself out of his stupor and went closer to the other side of the bed. Tokishima-kun breathed, had a pulse but was unresponsive. Takumi felt at his pockets and took out the small lamp he usually had with him. Pupils reacted to the light as they were supposed to.

"What happened to him?" he finally asked.

"Rune depletion," was the short answer, which explained a lot. "But he is still alive. Even the Valvrave AI didn't know why, just called him 'unnatural'," he continued before Takumi had a chance to ask.

He frowned in response. He might know what the machine had meant by that, but doubted if he should tell. He straightened up and looked down at Tokishima-kun.

That abnormality the Valvrave AI had referred to might be Tokishima-kun's origins as a test tube baby, genetically engineered to be the 'ultimate being', as Dr. Tokishima had so eloquently put. It might explain why he was alive. But was it his place to tell?

Brief struggle with his thoughts and seeing L-elf close to losing his patience made him choose his words carefully. "Tokishima-kun is different, even among the students of the Sakimori Academy," he finally stated. "Special because he was  _made_  to resemble the Magius very closely. Piloting the Valvrave merely unlocked his immortality."

L-elf could read between the lines, and by the slight widening of his eyes, Takumi assumed he had done so.

"And because of that unique body, he survived," L-elf concluded and looked at Takumi over the bed.

Takumi nodded. "It's the only theory I have for this," he indicated at the motionless body.

"Does he need coma treatment or runes?"

"That, I can't answer. Only one who knows all about Tokishima-kun is his father, Doctor Tokishima Souichi, one of the scientists we were meant to rescue on the Earth mission. But he refused, said he wanted stay," Takumi explained. He cursed himself for not knowing the details of the project, even when he had been a part of it.

"So he's in Dorssia," L-elf said while looking down at Tokishima-kun, seemingly displeased.

They fell silent. Takumi wished he had more solid knowledge, about Tokishima-kun or about taking care of comatose patients. He was a good kid, not meant to be rotting away hooked up on some machines.

"If he needs runes, there's the  _Phantom_ ," L-elf suddenly said. "You can't get the machines out of it, so he would need to be kept inside the ship."

Meaning they couldn't dispose of the ship. Or let the people on it go, or release them from their suffering, if they were beyond help.

"How are you going to get him into that machine? We don't have anyone here with proper medical knowledge, much less someone who knows Magius technology."

"It's not a long-term solution," L-elf scowled at him, "and I can get one of the advanced transportable medical beds from Dorssia. And we need to get in contact with that doctor you mentioned, which will take too much time."

His reasoning was solid, Takumi admitted. He was conflicted – of course he wanted to save the kid, but doing it at the cost of those people was pretty inhumane. Expect he had been involved with the Valvrave project, so he couldn't really be talking about morals suddenly. Besides, L-elf clearly had set his sights on saving the pilot, regardless of the cost.

Sighing, he scratched the back of his head. He would help as best as he could.

"Officially he's dead," L-elf interrupted his thoughts. Takumi was confused and looked at him questioningly. "Can't have rumors about human experimentation going on, can we?"

He supposed it was a good reason, but felt like he wasn't getting the full story here. "That's not the only reason," was more like a statement rather than a question.

"It's not. I have plans concerning him. I only let you on this because I had to have a professional opinion."

"So the students don't know? Are they even  _going_ to know?" Takumi asked, disbelief coloring his expression.

"Eventually," L-elf said with a low voice, his stare challenging.

'Eventually' could mean tomorrow or the day Tokishima-kun awakened, if he ever did.

Takumi felt like throwing his arms in the air. He wasn't even getting paid to deal with difficult ex-enemy-military and students who had decided to declare independence. These kids just kept getting themselves in some strange stuff.

 

* * *

The hangar had quieted. All the students were back where they belonged, located to the girls' dormitory building. Akira, in a moment of courage, had accessed all the cameras from her unit and had meant to take a look around the school. She had stared horrified at four feeds at the same time and closed the connection to the cameras with an audible gasp. The dormitory was the only place saved from a bloodbath. Or it had been cleaned for the students' sake.

She had now few safe feeds open; one to the control room his brother was in, two located close to the main entryway of the school grounds and few other ones in the dormitory building. She sat with her knees hugging her chest, just watching the cameras and waiting for the evening. She had also watched Rukino-san work with Otamaya and two other guys repairing her unit for some time.

She noticed how L-elf appeared on the camera that surveilled the entrance. A knock interrupted her, however, and she looked up. Shoko-chan was hovering outside, asking to be let in.

Akira hesitated. She didn't think Shoko-chan would hurt her, but she still felt fear. Fear that Shoko-chan, the friend who had gotten her out of her isolation, would reject her now that she was aware of what she was.

Shoko-chan seemed to assume she wouldn't get in and made her hands into fists for a second. Then, she lifted herself so she could sit on the unit's hatch.

"Akira-chan… I," she too hesitated, and looked up so Akira couldn't see her expression. "You don't have let me in. Just listen to me, for now. Okay?"

Akira didn't respond in any way, so Shoko-chan took it as consent to continue. "I have no right to call you my friend," she said quietly. "And I… I know, that no matter how many times I apologize it would not be enough."

Akira felt her throat tighten.

"What kind of a friend  _does_  that? I turned you away when you needed the most support, and th-then I was so  _cold_  to you and—" she stopped, put her hands on her face, took a few breaths to calm herself. Akira hugged her legs as strongly as she could and stared resolutely ahead.

A quiet moment passed.

"I know it's not enough, but I want you to know I'm sorry. So, so sorry." Her voice was so low Akira barely heard it. It was like her insides were turned around, with sorrow and anger fighting for dominance.

She wanted to be angry so much. It was Shoko-chan who— who— Inuzuka-senpai and Yamada and Haruto were  _gone—_

Gone, and that sorrow might just crush her.

"I'm sorry," the quiet plead was repeated.

Akira punched the button for opening the hatch. Shoko-chan shrieked when it suddenly moved beneath her and Akira was there, gripping Shoko-chan as tightly as she could.

They held each other for a moment, both crying their hearts out. Akira was angry, but willing to forgive her friend for her mistakes.

"I'm so glad," Shoko-chan spluttered soon after, letting Akira go and wiping the tears off on her sleeve. Akira smiled a little and did the same.

"I'm so glad," she repeated. "I know I have to apologize to Haruto and Rukino-san—"

Akira froze.

She was aware Shoko-chan was still talking excitedly. But she didn't know.

_She didn't know._

And the crushing wrongness was back.

 

* * *

L-elf was back at the school, heading for the boys' dormitory building. The room he had shared with Haruto had few important objects hidden in it, and now he needed one of them.

Kibukawa had walked with him and departed towards the other dormitory where majority of the students were. He had made the teacher promise him he would keep the secret, but it didn't mean L-elf trusted him enough to not babble. He was a soldier, yes – sensible enough to know when to keep his mouth shut and just march on —but he was also sentimental and protective of the students. There was no chance he would slip, but there was a chance he might outright tell.

A necessary risk, however. Confiding in him had also paid off – he couldn't help directly now, but had mentioned something game turning.

L-elf had to find one of his advanced communicators, those that could send and receive encrypted messages. A-drei would have to make a shipment and start searching for a certain doctor.


	4. Grip on reality

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the responses! Have an infodump.
> 
> The acronym for Valvrave is canon, by the way. And if I understood the official site of the show right, the school had 3000 students, so I’m basing the numbers on it. Also, I didn’t know what name to use: “kamitsuki” or “holy spirit”. I ended up tossing a coin about it. The latter won.

To say she was devastated would be an understatement. _A huge one, more like,_ Saki reflected as she approached the two girls sitting in the hallway leading to the hangar. Shoko-san was curled into herself, her hands gripping her hair. Her crying was silent but visible, sobs moving her body irregularly. Akira-chan was next to her, as hopelessly helpless as usual, wanting to offer comfort but not really knowing how to, if Saki was to guess.

She had visited the dormitory everyone was at and had gotten something to eat and a change of clothes, now in her school uniform and a pale woolen knitwear jacket. She had intended to go back to Carmilla, to oversee the repairs and help the guys somewhat, but had stopped right at the corner of the hallway when she had seen the other girls.

This might have counted as eavesdropping, if there was anything to listen to. What made her halt, she wasn’t sure of, but it might have something to do with the fear she was fighting down. Fear of lashing out at her friends in anger. Fear of doing something unforgivable to them.

Saki wasn’t violent like that. She knew it herself, so why was she so afraid?

It was like she had multiple conflicting personas. One wanted to scream, wanted to throw things, wanted to someone _hurt_ like it hurt her. One wanted to break down, just cry, cry until the whites of her eyes were red and all the tears dried out.

Worst of all, she wanted to give up. Just lie down, end this bad dream. This wasn’t reality. No reality was this cruel on one soul.

All this was fueled by the girl having her own world broken into pieces in the next corridor. Or no, it wasn’t just her—it was all doing of the cruel mistress, destiny herself pushing her down. She had gained and lost so much, her victories achieved with steep prices and loss was unexpectedly experienced time and time again. Her childhood a memory made of terror and bitterness, her dreams crushed by the corrupt adults, her friends dying one by one or lost because of a change in events.

The world had wanted to kill her.

She wanted to stop being the ragdoll thrown for feeble amusement.

Eyes wet, she changed her destination. Saki couldn’t face Shoko-san in this turmoil. Not yet. The evening was close.

* * *

 

It was a sad sight, to see 40 students and two teachers looking like dead on their feet. It had been over than an hour since their arrival and while everyone had been fed, they still needed a week worth of sleep. Many still wore the school uniform, even if it was sullied with blood and dirt, meaning they had had no time to change or couldn’t have done it on their own. Some had gotten their own non-uniform clothes on, hoodies and other comfortable pieces. They needed all the comfort they got.

Hastily prepared random chairs were scattered behind the girls’ dorm, just next to the windows of the dorm rooms themselves. Those who couldn’t walk were helped to their room window, so they could participate in the meeting with everyone else. No one was above the second floor, so no shouting was necessary.  The air was tense, with nervous, even fearful students shifting in their seats with unease. Few spoke with their friends and others, speculating and reassuring each other. Some were still talking while standing up and the last of the people made their appearance one by one. The two teachers were having a discussion about something.

Notably Rukino Saki and Renbokoji Akira had been placed to the side, either because they opted to do so or the peer pressure had made the choice for them. Close to the pilots sat the ones aware of their condition, not afraid the slightest of them. Their fear was more angled towards their unsure future.

Sashinami Shoko sat silent in the middle of the broken circle of chairs. She seemed to be gloomy, but to anybody who had come to be reassured by her, she flashed a smile that couldn’t quite reach her eyes. She appeared determined when she wanted, but clearly felt the opposite. It was also influencing the students– when the head of the state didn’t know what to do, who did?

The module was shifting into night-mode, emulating an evening with a drop of few degrees. The setting sun was bathing the scenery in yellow and orange hues. The first Valvrave unit was visible from their meeting place, red paint glinting in the last rays of the sun.

As far as L-elf knew, the bomb scare regarding Hito had done the trick. He had taken a look inside and the body double was still present and untouched. His brief visit to the dorms the students were occupying made him note he was being avoided, too. He had gone there to make a check on who’s actually alive, how many are injured and how badly and what they would need for efficient treatment. Ordering medical equipment and other easily transported utilities, like rations, made a credible cover for the order he had placed with A-drei. That way he could convince the pilots to attack the delivery ship later.

Clock slowly ticking down to seven, L-elf made a mental checklist on what he intended to reveal tonight. Honesty was his best option, excluding what made him try and save a member of the Dorssian royal family and the fact that Haruto was still struggling on.

Satisfied with his checklist and the headcount, he rose up from his seat which he had taken from the far side.

* * *

 

“We need to declare a quorum. Prime Minister, would you?”

The place fell silent and heads turned towards standing L-elf, who had changed out of his white uniform and switched to the school one.

Those who had not taken a seat yet moved to take one. Then Sashinami stood up. “The quorum is met. The meeting is official and can begin.”

It was odd for L-elf to stick to formal meeting procedure. Even odder was how such a free spirit like Sashinami knew the procedure. L-elf had probably told her.

Satomi was uneasy. He knew what this meeting was about – hell, who _didn’t_ know – but was still nervous. This, here, was a turning point he didn’t wasn’t ready to face. All had gone to dogs, this whole day and the whole academy and the whole New JIOR thing. He knew what the Dorssian refugee was planning and wasn’t really against it, seeing his sister gave her support for it. He was happy for her, happy that she might find a place outside the confines of a room or a Valvrave.

But he would be in denial if he said he didn’t fear this. Losing the run for prime minister had been a bitter experience. He could have lead the country, stopped the massacre before it even began!

Well, he wasn’t sure about the leading. Or the whole ‘students are monsters, let’s kill them all,‘ thing, as he didn’t have all the facts.

“You have questions,” L-elf stated, “and you will have answers. First is news. Tokishima Haruto and Yamada Raizou have fallen in the line of duty.”

A collective silence was his answer. Satomi’s silence was one of shock, comprehension slowly dawning. It explained the solemn pilots and Sashinami’s fragile state. It explained why there wasn’t a boisterous orange-haired delinquent shouting about being Thunder.

First shock fading, there were multiple reactions. Murmured questions, some anguished faces, shaking heads. Takahi beside him had clutched her hands in front of her chest, grimace on her face. Satomi saw Otamaya put his head in his hands leaning forward. Iori and Midori were sitting at the edge of their seats, looking like they had seen a ghost.

Satomi glanced at Akira, who was watching the ground. She already knew, he realized, assuming from her lack of reaction. Next to her Rukino was stubbornly still, her eyes wet but not actually crying.

L-elf let the mutterings die out before continuing. “I will explain everything from the beginning, meaning the first Dorssian attack.”

“Actually, let me start from even further,” said Kibukawa-sensei with raised hand. He stood up and waited for a reaction from L-elf, who nodded. Curious heads turned toward the teacher.

“JIOR declared their neutrality, but they were developing weapons in secret. One of the projects was the ‘VAmpire Link Vessel Rune Activation Vital Engine’, or as you know it, the Valvrave project.”

Shocked murmurs were heard, but Kibukawa-sensei raised his hand as a sign for quiet. “Valvraves are alien technology, developed for a while now. For the project, a module was to be produced. The Module 77,” he explained, naturally taking the role of a teacher. The students remained silent, either of shock or fascination or both.

“The module was to have JIORan military personnel as the secondary citizens. Every resident of this module was part of the army somehow. The prioritized citizens, meaning non-military ones, were the students of the Sakimori Academy.

“Here’s the kicker about the students: they were classified as important because they were supposed to be pilots for mass-produced Valvraves. The students were made specifically to pilot them. The civil life on this module functions as a cover for weapons research and development facility.”

Satomi was still. Shock had frozen him and his trail of thought. This, just – it ran deeper than he ever could have guessed. Of course it was weird for a school to have weaponshidden away, but it was just downright baffling that the module – their home, Module 77 – was a lie. Lie solely dedicated to protecting the Valvrave project from public eye.

Kibukawa-sensei let his words sink in before continuing. “This will probably hurt, but I’ll be frank. By saying you were made to pilot them means exactly that. You all are… produced,” the hesitation to use the word was evident, “to have the genetic requirements needed to pilot a Valvrave.”

Produced. _Produced_ to pilot. Like cattle raised for milking and meat. Sheep nurtured to give wool. They were supposed to be animals for JIOR to use.

Satomi was sick to his stomach, his understanding making him wish for some kind of ignorance.

But it was ignorance that had gotten them into this mess, wasn’t it?

His reaction was shared with many students, confusion and despair making them more restless. Swallowing this kind of information so suddenly was hard, Satomi knew from experience now. Akira had a shocked expression, meaning even her in her clever hacker ways hadn’t uncovered the truth.

“Doesn’t that mean we’re monsters, after all?” An angry male voice shouted. A new wave of confused questions hit the teacher, who now raised both of his hands in an attempt to calm the students.

“Don’t call them that!”

Everyone turned their heads to see who the new speaker was. It was Sashinami, Satomi realized, when she rose up with her shoulders tight, clutching the hem of her skirt. She glared at the whole crowd. “Don’t go calling your fellow students like that. Not when they’re the ones protecting _us_!”

Few students looked ashamed, some like they might protest. Satomi glanced at Akira, who had a considerably good poker face on, but he couldn’t help noticing how Rukino twitched in irritation or in anger.

“No, you are not immortal,” L-elf interrupted before a fight broke out, effectively getting the attention back at himself. “While you are modified, you are normal humans. Until you decide to pilot a Valvrave unit. We don’t know how, but they change something inside you, making you more resistant to dying. Not truly immortal, however – I don’t know if you will age, but the best way of killing a pilot is by blowing them up.”

The blunt words made people grimace, silence falling once again. L-elf continued his calm explaining.

“All the units are fueled by so called runes. Those runes are things like memories, DNA, speech, emotions – in other words, information. That’s why the best source of runes are humans. Runes must be acquired by the pilot of the first unit, who collects these runes by biting a human. Those runes are somehow transferred to the first Valvrave unit. Other units use Mirror Engine, and the first unit distributes the collected runes to them.”

The heavy words made almost no sense to Satomi. Runes, information, whatever – why wasn’t it public knowledge? It would probably revolutionize industries, daily lives, make spending energy no concern. Instead they were fuel for weapons. And the process of getting runes seemed… icky.

“The _Phantom_ , the ship you saw during the broadcast, is indeed here. We took over it on our way from Earth because we didn’t know what threat it could have posed to us, if we left it alone.”

It had caused a threat by just being there. Whoever had sent it had to know what was inside. The Earth crew had decided to tell about the _Phantom_ after the catastrophic conference, but somehow the journalists found it. It was too convenient.

“Those humans inside the ship were locked to a machine that collects the runes from them forcibly. We don’t know how, since it is alien technology, too. But we know what those aliens are. You might have seen it: the Dorssian leader was being possessed by one.”

Who hadn’t? After things had calmed down momentarily, people watched and discussed various news reports. Dorssia tried to disclaim the video, saying it was doctored, but did everyone actually believe them was unclear. The Wired network was on fire with differing opinions. Satomi knew it was true, since he had heard the plan from Tokishima and witnessed L-elf wearing the bloody uniform earlier.

But aliens as an explanation sounded so flimsy. It wasn’t unbelievable, seeing the whole Valvrave thing, but it still felt odd.

Various students looked lost, questions waiting to be voiced and answered to, but L-elf clearly planned to go through the whole story without stopping.

“Those aliens are called Magius. This is second-hand information, but according to a Magius Tokishima met, they came to Earth few centuries ago. They need runes for food and have no bodies, so they jacked humans to survive here, switching hosts when the body became too old. Met with resistance, they formed a council consisting of Magius and humans.

“That council concentrated on keeping their existence hidden, while securing runes for themselves. Along time, they became too influential. They have possessed and non-possessed people loyal to them in high positions such as the Dorssian leadership. I came up with a plan with Tokishima to reveal them to the world.”

And they killed – or tried to kill – the Dorssian leader live, the same way Rukino had been. The list of names on Wired was true, then.

And if those Magius had such a reach, it could mean they could control media. Make sure a show of killing a Sakimori student was released. Make sure a hapless TV reporter found a ship full of enslaved humans in the home of the students.

“We were set up,” Satomi whispered, horrified. The closest ones to him whipped their heads towards him.

“What?” Takahi was staring at him too.

“We were set up,” he repeated louder. “If those, those… aliens can control nations, why couldn’t they control the media? Show people what they want them to see. Like how Rukino can’t die and then having that reporter find the ship they most likely sent here is too big coincidence!”

His words cleared up the situation for everyone.

“They wanted us to be hated,” Iori remarked with wide eyes.

“They wanted to get us all killed!”

“But why would they want to do that? We didn’t do anything!”

Disorder broke out, the students confused of the revelation. Some were crying or close to it, many held their heads in their hands and wild questions flung about. The extend of the manipulation, how they were made to be the beasts in the eyes of the public and the consequences of their actions were punishing thoughts in everyone’s minds.

Satomi ran his hands through his hair and leaned forward to put his elbows on his knees. He didn’t know why yet, but so many other things were clear now. Ignorance truly would have been bliss.

A gunshot ran out. The crowd quieted immediately, Satomi and others startled. He saw L-elf aiming a gun up on the sky.

“Sit down. I wasn’t finished.”

The distraught students took their seats again, tense and blinking tears away. L-elf calmly lowered his pistol, clicked the safety on and put the gun behind his back under his jacket, tucked into his pants. So that’s why he had the full uniform on, Satomi surmised. Hiding a gun as his ace.

“I suspect we got too close. The Magius I mentioned Tokishima meeting was a dissenter, who wanted to go public with her knowledge and co-exist with humans. Council disagreed,” L-elf told simply. “I have met two Magius, the one in the body of Amadeus and one in the body of my former superior. Both had the same thing to say: they want to have world peace and hide their existence. They think of themselves as humanity’s protectors. Meaning they manipulate the world as they see fit.”

And they wanted a rogue nation in line. Satomi was disgusted but also impressed at some level.

“Then… how did Tokishima-kun die if his Valvrave is still in one piece?” A voice called out from a dorm room window.

Curious cases followed L-elf. “A weakness for the Magius and Tokishima Haruto is their need for runes. Tokishima hadn’t fed in a while, so his Valvrave started using his own runes during his fight. He essentially forgot everything, even his own name, before dying.”

A brief pause followed.

“It was also how Nobi Marie died.”

Confusion was profound in the crowd. She hadn’t been a pilot.

“Nobi was a prototype tester. She interacted with the engine of the first Valvrave unit, the experiment made on using runes. She lost her memories, but the experiment was ended before she died. On Earth, to save us, she piloted the first unit for the last time. Her runes were used up.”

It made sense, Satomi admitted.

“I will tell what happened, concerning the pilots and Magius, since the first Dorssian attack.”

* * *

 

The sun was gone by the time L-elf finished his recounting. Takumi was content to let him do the explaining.

But he noticed how L-elf conveniently left out the reason for why he had dashed off in the middle of their mission on Earth. It had to have something to do with their amazing escape, and while Tokishima had told him generally about a sympathetic Magius woman, he didn’t know what exactly she had to do with L-elf.

It had been hard for Takumi to admit what had been going on behind the scenes, but the facts had to be let out. Everyone could now do their own decisions. This whole evening would take a while to fully settle in, but having everyone know would be for the best.

Now he wondered about that magic or something that the Magius and evidently Tokishima-kun could do. It utilized runes somehow, so the thought reminded him about the first unit’s pilot’s state. It might be the reason behind the sustaining – brain struggled to keep the body and itself alive even in extreme conditions with unconventional methods, such as sinking into a coma. Maybe the other pilots too could do that magic too.

“We should have known since the beginning,” Nanami beside him suddenly voiced. She was as shocked as the students, since she basically was the only person in the module to be an adult who didn’t belong to the military. Despite her injuries, she chose to sit outside. Although shaken with revelations, she had gathered herself up and was now showing confidence, for the sake of the students, Takumi assumed.

“I-it’s horrible that you all are subjected to that… I’m not part of the military, just an ordinary teacher intern. And to have worked to someone who’s just using you… for what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”

Her touching words were a small relief – not every adult was out to get them, then. If somebody didn’t believe her, they didn’t say their doubts aloud. Takumi laid a supportive arm on her shoulder.

“It’s true. Nanami here is the only grown-up to be outsider. I’m also sorry,” he admitted to the students, wincing lightly, “for putting you through everything and lying all the time.”

Earning forgiveness was going to be hard, but it was out now. He wished the students came through to him in time.

Air was heavy around the students. While many questions were finally settled, they still had to think what was going to happen next. Forty people in a big module, drifting through space, everyone around them hostile and waiting, probably going to strike sometime soon. It spelled only more death, if they didn’t do take action and fast. Takumi understood the restlessness, feeling unsure himself.

Sashinami, for the first time since her outburst, rose up to speak. “I think everyone here has been fooled by different people. Nonetheless, my actions as your prime minister have been unacceptable. I’m willing to resign from my position.”

“What?!” was almost collective reply.

“You can’t do that now—“

“Please!” She interrupted. “I’m responsible for the death of, of… of thousands of students! I want to help everyone, not be the one sending you to your deaths—“

“Stop running away!” Takumi realized Rukino was the one shouting now. She rose up fast enough to topple her chair almost over. “Haruto died to save _you_ and now you’re giving up?!”

Her angry eruption captivated the students, L-elf only observing impassively. Renbokoji sitting beside Rukino was taken aback and was watching the girls alternately. Nanami was already rising from her seat but Takumi grabbed her shoulder. When she looked at him questioningly he shook his head. Let the girls talk it out, since he knew they both had been close to Tokishima-kun. Takumi was ready to go between them if they started throwing punches.

“I’m not giving up, I’m taking responsibility.  I’m not fit to lead,” Sashinami insisted.

It only seemed to aggravate Rukino, who now pointed one finger at Sashinami. “Haruto supported you, even when you cast him aside! You’re right, you’re not a good leader, but for fuck’s sake, _he trusted you_! Trusted you to make the right decision!” She took few deep breaths and crossed her arms, her gaze steely.

“But you run away. He wanted a place where we both could live.” It was clear what she meant by both. “You could have carried his dream forward.”

The straight words struck Sashinami, who lowered her head and clutched the hem of her skirt again. It seemed like Rukino was of the opinion that Sashinami was more or less to blame when it came to Tokishima-kun’s supposed death. In these kinds of moments Takumi wanted to reveal one more truth, the one L-elf made him keep secret. Loss was becoming a permanent fixture in the lives of these kids.

Sashinami in turn took a shaky breath and straightened herself, looking Rukino straight in the eyes. “I want to,” she said aloud so that everyone there could hear her. “But it’s not my right. If the people want me to step aside, I will.”

The declaration stirred unease once again. While the facts were on the table, distrust was still prevalent, making everyone conflicted. Immortal pilots, who needed to feed on humans and said humans living together was uncomfortable thought for many. Takumi knew the idea needed a lot to work, when trust was one of the cornerstones. And trust was the most difficult thing to establish in this environment, between two different levels of food chain.

“I have a solution,” L-elf stated abruptly, interrupting Rukino who was about to answer.

“Prime Minister. Shut down the nation of New JIOR.”

How many stunned silences can one man cause? Takumi felt like bashing his head against something.

* * *

 

Shoko was… dumbstruck.

L-elf was probably the most logical and rational person on the whole module, at least of their age group. Suddenly wanting to put their lifeline out of business was… it was so against the image she had of him.

“What the hell are you saying?”

“You want us to go back being part of JIOR?”

“That’s not going to work!”

The students held a similar opinion. She knew they might want a different leader, was willing to go with the majority – even support L-elf, Satomi-senpai or Kibukawa-sensei – but shutting down was out of the question. It meant they were fair game for any nation or those Magius.

It had struck her as weird, when L-elf asked for a formally recognized meeting. But now she understood why: he wanted to officially end this.

“W-why would I do that?” she almost yelled over other protests. Agreeing shouts were heard, but L-elf remained calm.

“So that I can establish a new nation. Or, you can treat this as a coup d’état,” he said, while casually taking his gun back into his hand, keeping it lowered.

The implied threat made so indifferently was effective. It made everyone wary, even more than before, and it made Shoko worry. Worried for the safety of the people remaining, worried for their future and most of all, worried for their sanity. How did adults handle these kinds of sudden events and were still able to keep going on?

“New nation?” she questioned. That didn’t make any sense.

“We have seen how far this democracy has gotten us. I made a promise with Tokishima Haruto to unveil the world; to create a place for humans and holy spirits alike. To ensure success, I’m taking the lead.”

“Then what are you suggesting if there won’t be a democracy, like we _all_ decided?” Shoko could understand his desire to honor the promise he made, but going this way about it was unusual.

“A kingdom, an empire, oligarchy if needed,” he stated.

Meaning he was going to lead one way or another, she could guess.

“Give me the reins and I’ll stop the unnecessary casualties, like the ones we have witnessed here,” he addressed all. “I can make Dorssia our ally. We could get the uncooperative Magius and the council out of the picture. And it would be a place for _everyone_.”

L-elf could be charming if he wanted, Shoko supposed, or he was just being his own manipulative self. It was most likely a mix of both with some fear added in, seeing he was still holding the gun.

“We’re with him,” Rukino-san stated. She hadn’t sat down again, and now took steps towards L-elf. Akira-chan, clearly hesitating because of the attention she was getting, stood up nervously and trailed after the other pilot. Support from them meant a rift was open.

Shoko understood them with no problems. It sounded wonderful, a place without any hate, and she knew Haruto would have loved something like it. But she was torn between her feelings and her duty once again. When majority didn’t want something, it usually meant it wasn’t happening. Expect this question was about relinquishing the need for said majority.

_What was she supposed to do?_

She saw Satomi-senpai rise up, this time. “I’m with him,” he declared too. He was following his sister.

Many were hesitant, conflicted about who they should support. This wasn’t as clear-cut as the election for the Prime Minister had been. This meant a potential new enemy. Those who didn’t necessarily want a new country could be left without a place to be.

Now Takahi-senpai and Otamaya-kun rose up, almost at the same time. Sighing, Kibukawa-sensei followed suit. Nanami-sensei beside him was surprised. She thought for few seconds while looking very concentrated, and finally she stood up little staggeringly.

Questioning glances were thrown around by everyone seated. Both teachers had chosen the new choice. Following them, some students rose up. Some of those stuck in the dormitory raised their hand in a gesture of support. Midori was one of the standing ones, looking determined. Iori sitting next to her was perplexed, and Shoko saw Midori give her a small, encouraging smile. The smile was the icebreaker, and she in turn stood up.

With thirty-odd students standing or keeping a hand up, L-elf had gained the majority needed to make a decision. Granted, as the Prime Minister Shoko still could veto the whole thing, but found herself unwilling. The speech was convincing, and most important of all, it was something Haruto had fought for so fervently.

Shoko smiled. They could do this. She, in a way, was held responsible of her actions with this decision. “So, L-elf the first, what does a kingdom sound like?”

He smirked in reply and put his gun back to its place. “It won’t be ‘L-elf’ the first.”

Puzzled expressions took place.

* * *

 

While not a unanimous decision, support from the Prime Minister herself had changed many minds, Akira was glad to see. Infighting would not do well for them.

“I, Prime Minister Sashinami Shoko, declare the nation of New JIOR closed down, effective immediately.” Shoko-chan said with a loud voice.

“I hereby declare the foundation of the Galactic Empire and the Module 77 its territory,” L-elf continued after her as loudly as she had.

This was it.

So much had been stacked against them, and now they were going to win against those odds. Akira would make sure of it.

She had a press statement to release on the Wired.


	5. Interlude I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Interludes will contain snippets of other content, such as news reports, news articles, military reports, e-mails, entries from diaries, blogs and Nanami Rion’s training journal.
> 
> Thank you for reading and responding.

“…and now, to our main story.”

A young woman with her brown hair carefully arranged and with delicate make-up was sitting in news studio. A dark red jacket with a white dress shirt and a dark pencil skirt adorned her. Left of her sat an older man, whose black hair was combed neatly back. He had a formal suit with a green tie on.

The studio was clean white with blue highlights, such as the chairs. On the screen various news headlines, weather and stock information scrolled by. In the right upper corner was the semi-transparent logo of the channel.

“According to an official press statement released on the Wired network, the state of New JIOR has been shut down and in its place, the Galactic Empire has been formed,” the woman spoke clearly. “The now former Prime Minister Sashinami Shoko formally declared the closing of the nation several hours ago. After that, the proclaimed Emperor Mikhail I has taken control peacefully.”

The camera switched focus to the man. “Not much is known about the new leader or the new empire. It was noted that the former Allied Forces ‘slaughtered 1,984 innocent students and three holy spirits’ to quote. These so called ‘holy spirits’ were pilots of the mechanical Valvrave battle units. The statement refers to the pilots as the only immortal beings on the module. Left are two of these holy spirits and 37 humans, including the Emperor.

“We have a guest to comment on this news piece. Good evening, Mister Matthew Adams from ARUS Public Affairs office, and welcome to the Late Night News.”

A second man entered the frame. He also had a clean suit with a plain blue tie on. He was younger than the male news reporter, but older than the female one. His light-shaded hair was spiked stylishly and he had black-framed glasses. “Evening and thank you.”

“What do you think has happened on the module?” the woman asked.

“After the former Allied Forces left, according to reports of our fleets, the students have taken Module 77 back under their control. There has been a power struggle, which I imagine was in response to the occupation of the AF.”

“There were images attached to the statement. Our specialists say the images are manipulation-free. The images show supposedly students, many of them shot multiple times, lying in a school building and in something that looks like a hangar. Because these images are so graphic, we are not showing them on air. Doesn’t this mean they weren’t monsters as ARUS president Jeffrey Anderson claimed they were?”

_“_ We have not acquired the information necessary to draw the classification of type seven lifeforms back. Images like these are not enough.”

The woman leaned slightly forward. “If enough evidence is provided and the killed students were actually humans, how is ARUS going to handle the possible backlash and relations with the new empire?”

“Of course, we are very sorry, if that turns out to be the case,” the guest acquiesced and adjusted his glasses. “But we also have to remember that this is war between ARUS and New JIOR. The latter has been closed down, and with it, we hope to have a clean plate with Galactic Empire, if they prove to be willing to cooperate.”

“Dorssia has officially stated they are not recognizing the new empire as a legitimate country, and are still treating the residents as type sevens. Will this have an effect on ARUS decisions in the future?”

“Dorssia, as we know, is very unstable at the moment and thus not able to deal with outside affairs so well. If the Galactic Empire turns out to be a threat to ARUS’s safety, we will handle them accordingly.”

The male reporter looked at the guest silently, but nodded. “Last question: do you think the newly crowned Emperor is part of the controversial Magius council, which have been said to be in charge of Dorssia, possibly ARUS and JIOR?”

At this, the guest seemed to be uncomfortable, but answered seemingly honestly. “The claim of such council in control is, of course, under debate even here in ARUS. If Mikhail I is part of the supposed council, it warrants further actions like I earlier stated.”

“Thank you for visiting, Mister Adams.”

“Thank you,” the guest nodded in return.

“It remains to be seen if the new Empire, rising from the ashes of New JIOR, is a threat.” The woman concluded, facing the cameras. “New information has been promised in the statement. To read the full article and see the pictures attached, please visit our website.

“Our second story today is about the escalating Dorssian conflict, with casualties rising…”


	6. Enemy lines

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an update to show I’m not dead. I’m sorry for taking so long and uploading such a short chapter.
> 
> In this chapter I have to begin introducing necessary OCs, named and unnamed ones. And I had to make up a real name for A-drei, too.  
> \- About A-drei’s rank: I don’t really know what kind of rank ‘Special Duty Captain’ is. When Google doesn’t help, I’m just assuming all this military stuff.  
> \- Walkit-class heavy space cruiser is one of those big red-blue Dorssian ships, where Cain and Kriemhield were usually giving commands.

The long marble-floored hall was dimly lit. The whole place was luxurious, with a dark red carpet on the floor and various expensive-looking decorations, such as grand paintings, making the corridor impressive. The wallpaper was pretty yet elegant, subtle flower pattern painted with different white and gold tones. Seemingly extending far away, the hall was meant to leave an impression on everyone who passed through it.

Not many had that privilege, since the palace had belonged to the Dorssian royal family before their fall. The palace was small, not like the majestic main palace in the capital, but it had been the secondary place used both as a retreat and as an office for conducting business. Since the family had been overthrown, the palace was entrusted to an important Dorssian family, who had had reach in politics, economics and the military. In fact, they had been privy to the secret of the Magius Council, but current intel was no one in the family had been part of the council itself.

Now the place was empty. The family had fled long ago to a more distant retreat, speculated to be located on the border of Dorssia and JIOR. The conflict nearing civil war had driven the family out, since they were known to have the influence strong enough that they had to deal with the council. The palace was located in what was once called East Europe, ways from the capital but still in an important city. The riots had sparked on day one. It was a miracle the palace hadn’t been vandalized, since the military force was dealing with the rioting citizens. There simply weren’t enough resources to protect the palace.

The palace was left alone because the royalists spread a rumor of it being an important asset to the revolution that was gaining speed. Military had left the palace alone for now, most likely because the Magius gave order to preserve it. Why, the royalists weren’t sure. Either they were unaware of the rumor, or they were hoping to settle things before resorting to bombing the palace to the ground. Or they were waiting for the important revolution figures to enter the grounds and then deal the killing blow.

Truth was the big heads were already there. The palace served as a façade. To the outside, the place was seemingly abandoned, with only low ornamental illumination left on.

Deep inside, however, the place was packed with activity.

A-drei was walking through the imposing corridor, going from the entrance to one of the hidden doors leading underground. The entrance he had used to get in was the only non-machine guarded entry point of the palace. It looked like he was a guard starting his shift, but by passing a screening process made by two actual human guards, he was subtly let inside. When the door clicked behind him, A-drei was left in dark interior. From there he made way down a staircase and was now in the large hall in dim illumination.

Two days ago, he had arrived aboard the Walkit-class heavy space cruiser _Preussen_ and had been promptly interrogated on his whereabouts. A-drei had luck – while the activity logs on his Kirschbaum would usually be closely scrutinized, there simply wasn’t any spare personnel or time to do it. Those logs could have blown his cover, since they showed opposite of what he actually had done in his time of absence. The Rear Admiral in command of the _Preussen_ had been dismissive when given the report of A-drei’s interrogation and let him continue operating as normal.

His commanding officer being MIA, A-drei was supposed to report to some other high-ranking officer, which the Rear Admiral counted as. He had been given order to return to his unit, which suited him fine. It meant he could travel with his Kirschbaum to another Walkit-class _Vineta_ under the pretense of returning to his unit. He had someone there who owned him a favor or two.

On the _Vineta_ he had gotten his hands on a communication tablet meant for transmitting encrypted messages. By inputting the code L-elf had given him, he could now communicate with the Module 77 without fear of wiretapping. He noted he had already received a message. The contents of the message required him to contact a medic and commence a search for a doctor. To do so, A-drei decided he would have to finally get in touch with the royalists, and for that he would return to Earth. His rank gave him leeway to do so. It was a public secret in military: Special Duty officers usually had an operation ongoing all the time, so not many would question him too closely.

He had arrived on Earth yesterday and gotten in contact with the royalists, gaining access to their main base of the moment. So he was walking in the seemingly vacant palace, making his way underground. The shipment to Module 19 was already arranged and he had gotten word of it to L-elf. Expect it was Emperor Mikhail now. A-drei knew he would need time to get used to that name and that title.

Now his problem was tracking this doctor. How he was relevant for the new Galactic Empire (did L-elf have any naming sense?) A-drei didn’t know, since the message didn’t elaborate. The doctor had the same surname as the pilot of the red Valvrave, so A-drei assumed Tokishima senior was needed to take care of the junior. He was a doctor after all, and since they probably were related, he could be trusted more than a random doctor nabbed from the street. He had made some queries while aboard the _Vineta_ , but it seemed he alone didn’t have the contacts necessary to track this high-profile doctor. So it was time A-drei came back to where he originally started. His family.

The royal family, trying to get ahead and back on their rightful place. He hadn’t seen his father for almost a year now. He could visit very rarely because of his position and because of his father’s home arrest, which permitted very few surveilled visits. His mother, bless her late soul, had passed away after the coup d’état, withering away because of sickness. Many speculated it had been slow poisoning, and while A-drei had looked into it, he hadn’t found evidence of such. Now he had more doubts, since the Magius were in the picture.

Then there was his uncle, Lieselotte’s father, who similarly had been in house arrest, but on the other side of Dorssia. This was to ensure no conspiracy could be easily formed by the family, though it had been futile. Lieselotte’s mother was involved in the politics, like her daughter had been, but from her A-drei hadn’t heard in long time. Lieselotte’s name was on that Magius list on the Wired, whereas her mother’s wasn’t. There still was a possibility of her being possessed by a Magius.

A-drei knew his father had been broken out of captivity by those still loyal to him. They were scrambling to get him back on the throne now that they had a real chance of doing so. Latest intel revealed his uncle had also escaped and was slowly making way to their current city, but how fast he was advancing or where is was right now, no one knew.

Tonight, A-drei would finally meet his father once again. He had reached the end of the long corridor and was now in front of sturdy door. The door looked natural at first glance, being made of high-quality wood and having elegant carving on it. Further inspection revealed the door to be too sturdy – in fact, it would probably withstand a big blow before giving in. Excessive violence would be needed to get past, and such noise would alert everyone inside.

A-drei knocked four times, like he had been instructed to do earlier when he contacted the royalists. The door clicked and opened slowly, revealing how thick the door actually was. A man much like the guards outside inspected him quickly, saluted and opened the door further.

There were two other men in the small room. They all had Dorssian military uniforms on. One of the men, a colonel, was sitting in front of a wooden desk that had a laptop on it. He paused whatever he was doing and glanced at the newcomer. A-drei snapped a salute at him. The third man in room was a sergeant, who was also sitting and dealing with a tablet, but he rose and saluted A-drei, who nodded back at the man.

“Captain A-drei Karlstein, sir? We have orders to take you to his Majesty, but first we need to perform a pat down search and a Magius test before admitting you any further inside,” the corporal who had opened the door explained.

A-drei didn’t know any of the men there personally, and certain paranoia born of difficult times told him not to comply. He was new here, so no one aside his family would trust him inside with weapons. He would have to cast his distrust aside to get ahead. Inwardly he sighed, and nodded at the corporal.

He had a pistol on him as well as two survival knives and spare ammo for the gun. The corporal put the items on a second, smaller table behind him. He took a small utility knife from the table and handed it to A-drei.

Taking a small breath, he brought his other hand up and made a cut on his palm. Next the corporal handed him a tissue and took the knife back. The knife was kept sharp and the cut it made was clean. A-drei pressed the tissue on his wound to stop the blood flow.

Few moments later A-drei was let inside yet another door. This time a private was facing him. Now they were in a bare corridor that branched to four different other corridors.

The further they walked in A-drei noted the structure was meant to confuse by being very maze-like. Here style was sacrificed for practicality, with no expensive art or other beautiful ornaments in sight. The walls were made of concrete and painted plain white. The floor was made of stone and made footsteps echo around them. Lightning was arranged so that the shadows danced around the walkers.

The place was genius for making an invading party doubt their movements all the time.

The rooms they passed were filled with buzzing people. Information traded hands, people ran about from one place to another and computer screens shone bright. A-drei could feel it in the air – people here were committed to making this revolution happen at all costs.

Finally the private escorting him stopped in front of a door and knocked. A guard opened it, who took a glance at the visitors. The guard saluted A-drei and turned away from him.

“Your Majesty, Captain A-drei Karlstein has arrived.”

This was a private office with a large desk in the center of it. Guarding the room was a man standing close to the desk and the man at the door. Sitting in front of the desk was a man in his fifties. He had noble features set in seriousness. His hair and beard were dark brown with slight greying on the sides. On him was white Chief of Staff uniform. On his dark blue-grey eyes he had reading glasses on, which he took off as he got the guard’s announcement.

The guard let A-drei properly in. His father had aged noticeably, he couldn’t help noticing. Otherwise he seemed same as always, calm in times of crisis and steady as a mountain. A-drei liked it the most in him. Even during the stormy coup d’état ten years ago he had been the one to support his family the most, never wavering even when threatened with execution. Back then he had been the reason A-drei had had a future at all.

First he bowed deeply, then he saluted. “Your Majesty, Special Duty Captain A-drei Karlstein reporting for duty.”

His father nodded at him, still wearing his serious face. “Guards, you’re dismissed.”

The guards paused and exchanged a glance. Orders were orders, but A-drei was a threat until proved otherwise. Deciding to trust their ruler, together they shouted “yes sir!” and strode out of the room, leaving the father and his son alone.

Now his father let himself smile a little. “Alexei, how have you been?”

A-drei relaxed his tense shoulders, clasping his hands behind his back. “Busy, father. I have been in contact with the newest country.”

His father raised an eyebrow at him and leaned back on his seat, motioning for his son to take a seat too. “Tell me more.”

A-drei accounted a short version of the story, starting back from the public execution of Rukino Saki. His father knew bits and pieces of how he knew Mikhail and how exactly he had lost his eye, so he saw fit to start from the discussion he had had with Rukino. He told his father of the promise he had made with the supposed Emperor and what the promise entailed.

His father didn’t interrupt him, though A-drei could see his confusion at times. He, however, probably was accustomed to weird events, seeing how his subjects were controlled by aliens. His father had only one question.

“Are you sure we can trust this Mikhail?”

A-drei thought back to when he had shook hands with him before leaving the module. These were unusual circumstances, but that look that L-elf had had in his eyes at the moment left no doubt.

“I trust him.”

It was enough of an answer to his father. “We aid them the best we can, if they can really help us. To find that doctor you mentioned, consult the head of our Intelligence, Lieutenant Colonel Grund.”

Seeing this was a dismissal, A-drei nodded and rose from his chair. “Thank you, father,” he said, meaning it.

“Alexei,” his father said with a serious tone before he could leave. “Take some rest. I can’t have you run yourself to the ground.”

Concern was clear in his words, even if his face had set on a stony look that said not to challenge him. A-drei pursed his lips for a moment, thinking if he really looked as tired as he felt.

“You too,” he answered quietly and stepped out of the office.

* * *

Collecting all those bodies… Shoko had thrown up thrice, even when she had nothing to left to throw up. It had taken hours, all able-bodied students dragging and carrying their fellow schoolmates. They had some protective gear such as gloves, face masks and clinical aprons. Stopping to cry or throw up and carrying bodies was exhausting and time-consuming, but they deserved a funeral.

Shoko had seen even L-el— _Mikhail_ doing his part, probably to speed up the process. It had been decided to collect everyone into the former boys’ dormitory and the building was supposed to be burned down. It made sense, they didn’t have to dig a huge grave this way, but the thought of everyone just… _burning_ made Shoko uneasy. Haruto would have to be included in that makeshift pyre, too.

The decision was out of her hands now. While it was a relief and something she had asked for earlier, she couldn’t help thinking about what Rukino-san had said at their evening meeting. Mikhail hadn’t given up – he actually seemed to be respecting Haruto’s will – and there she had been, throwing her towel in as a claim of responsibility.

Mikhail hadn’t given her a way out and named her to be in charge of internal affairs. Short explanation was that her duties consisted of taking care of the students. It also was a relief, meaning she was in a place that made her confront her fears and forced her to carry on. Shoko could carry Haruto’s will.

They had slept a short night’s sleep and after a miniscule breakfast, Shoko had asked help for the funeral arrangements. They were ready at early noon and had gotten a word out to every student to meet up. Understandably everyone was quiet when they were standing in front of the building containing their friends and acquaintances. Kibukawa-sensei had found few small bottles of lighter fluid and had doused the building with them, and was now standing with the others.

Shoko saw Mikhail walking towards them, carrying a familiar red suited body. She felt her eyes stinging again, even when she felt she had cried her eyes out during the morning already. Akira-chan had come to Shoko and thrown her arms around her, while watching their solemn-faced Emperor carry their savior. Similarly other students were crying or holding back tears, showing comfort to each other, while waiting for the flames to start consuming.

Mikhail emerged from the building empty-handed and stopped before the mass of grievance. “Any words?”

When silence followed, Mikhail nodded and motioned for everyone to stand back. Shoko could guess everything needed had already been said.

When the flames ignited, instantly rising high, tears blurred Shoko’s vision.

_These had to be the last casualties._


	7. New choice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't mean to take this much time to update. I'm sorry.

Walking with silent steps on the academy grounds, Mikhail could feel the cold night air biting his skin. It was after midnight that he deemed nobody would be awake or interested in following his movements, and so he could operate without unwanted witnesses.

To his knowledge, unit one had been left alone as instructed. Mikhail had ordered Renbokoji the pilot to monitor the cameras closest to the machine and report any too curious students to him. No reports had reached him, and while he was uneasy trusting this matter to anyone, he had no choice but to rely on Renbokoji's word.

He opened the hatch of the first unit and hopped on the pilot's seat. The cockpit lit up automatically and the screen in front of him flared to life.

"Hello, not-Haruto!" The woman on the screen waved at him cheerfully. The man also appeared, watching Mikhail skeptically with his arms crossed.

"It's Mikhail," he answered to the screen. "Can anyone else take control of this thing at the moment?"

"Yup!" Pino chirped, but then her face turned down to a pout. "Please get someone compatible here, we're hungry," she whined.

It meant that he could still utilize Hito without depending on Tokishima. This information was a relief and opened new paths for his future plans, and he felt some tension leave his shoulders.

"What happens to your connection with Tokishima?" he continued, not promising anything before he had all intel he could possibly gather.

"Nothing! I would provide him with runes if I could, but our connection goes only one way," Pino replied pouting, something like regret and pity in her voice.

Mikhail didn't know if this AI had any sort of capability for feelings, but if it didn't, it was still mimicking them convincingly. But he knew not to be fooled by the possible act, and didn't change his passive expression.

"I'll pick a pilot for you, if you can guarantee no turn for worse when it comes to Tokishima's current condition. Can he continue piloting when he wakes up?"

"You seem awfully sure he is going to make a comeback," the male version butted in, before Pino could answer. Prue's demeanor was reserved and doubtful of the human presence.

Mikhail, in turn, crossed his arms. "He is. I'm not going to let him sleep forever."

Pino stared at him with wide eyes for a second, before throwing her arms up with excitement. "Yay! Do your best, I miss him!"

Prue relaxed slightly, seemingly being more accepting of Mikhail and his quest, probably because his sister was rooting for him. "Fine. But hurry up with the new pilot, we're running low on runes," he conceded.

"Few things left," Mikhail stated. "Since you somehow were transferred from Cain's Valvrave to this one, could you do the same trick on one of the other machines?"

"No," was the immediate and defiant reply. "First, I can't because all the others are Mirror Engines, unlike this one. Second, I don't want to be separated from Pino again." Prue was now slightly glaring at Mikhail. Pino seemed to shrink into herself, also showing signs of uneasiness.

"Right, no separation. How about other pilots feeding and getting runes? Would you get any those?"

Prue pondered for a moment. "Some of it, yes, but it's not as effective. We wouldn't get enough to keep both units running at full power. We need a dedicated pilot."

It was most likely doubly inefficient, since there were now two entities requiring fuel inside the engine. Why the mirror engines had such a feature ( _more like a bug_ ) implemented was a bit baffling, but Mikhail dismissed the information for now. His foremost worry now was to somehow hook a capable – and willing enough – student for the new job.

Deciding he had enough intel for now, Mikhail said his brief goodbyes and made his way out of the unit and back towards the dormitory building, walking on autopilot and in thought.

He still had the records of each student's proficiency, but even if he found the best one, there was a high chance they would need to be won over. He didn't need an amazing pilot who was against him or against fighting – he needed a good pilot who could to what they were told to do. It was ideal if he could pick them as soon as tomorrow, which meant his night would continue until the early morning.

* * *

Assured she was alone, Takahi let out a very unladylike yawn and stretched her free arm up. In the other hand she was holding a cup of hot coffee. She was walking towards one of the control rooms underground, where the module's safety was seen to. It was early morning and her observation shift was set to begin in few minutes.

Early rising wasn't her forte, and she couldn't say she was happy to get up and go to work, but even she in her self-serving mind knew now wasn't a good time to be selfish. They were all screwed if an enemy attacked, and Takahi certainly wasn't going to take blame if she wasn't at her appointed place when she was supposed to be.

"Ninomiya Takahi!"

Takahi was just about to open the door to her destination when a shout that came from behind startled her. Turning to see her addresser, she could see their leader striding towards her from the end of the empty corridor. Wondering what kind of job she would now receive, she slightly slumped her shoulders in response.

Mikhail was fast in his steps and was soon close enough to drop a bomb on her.

"Pilot the first unit."

Just for a little bit, Takahi could later swear her brain grinded to a halt. Her first thought was that today so wasn't worth waking up for.

She realized her mouth might have been hanging little more open than intended and snapped it shut before recoiling and snapping at Mikhail.

" _What!_ Why me of all people?!"

His response was to merely cross his arms calmly. "You are my second best candidate when it comes to pure piloting ability. Your ability to follow orders ranks merely sixth, but it is outranked by your ability enough for me to overlook it. You know how to take command to an extent, but you are not ready to make necessary sacrifices, nor is your leadership —"

"Stop, stop!" Takahi screeched. This  _clearly insane_ man just walked up to her and started psychoanalyzing her right to her face. It would piss anyone off.

As if no outburst had happened Mikhail continued. "If you don't need the whole list, just say yes or no. It's not an order, at least at the moment. If all suitable candidates refuse, I have to appoint someone. There is a high chance I will pick you."

"Pick for what?"

The door to control room opened and Sashinami slipped into the corridor, door sliding shut behind her. Takahi could see how tired she was, the night shift schedule clearly getting to her.

They had had their disagreements before – Takahi could admit some fault lied in her for them – but she couldn't say her dislike had lessened in time. While she was not avoiding Sashinami actively, she had lowered her tolerance to the former prime minister's presence and had even ignored her at times. Seeing her tore open mental wounds that hadn't begun healing yet, making Takahi grind her teeth every so often.

Takahi crossed her arms (as best as she could with a coffee cup in one hand) and puffed her chest up with an air of barely concealed disdain. "None of your business, Sashinami. Go back to your post, I'm picking up your job after this talk is over."

"Ninomiya is a viable pilot for Unit I," Mikhail piped in, once again dismissing Takahi's voiced opinion. She turned to glare at him in irritation. She didn't wish to involve any people, much less Sashinami, in this conversation, when Mikhail evidently had no qualms about getting too personal. He just stared back evenly, before switching to watching Sashinami's reaction

Takahi saw how the latter was actually surprised. Since she didn't know, Takahi could surmise not many knew of the recruiting cruise Mikhail had going on. Sashinami was usually popular, and while that popularity has dimmed in the light of recent events, she still had connections to many students. It made Takahi wonder if she truly was the priority target here, or had a gag order been given to other students who had been asked to take up the job.

Sashinami suddenly straightened herself. "I should do it," she declared to Mikhail.

"You overall ranking is fifth," he countered as if expecting that reply. "I don't need a guilt-ridden underperformer desiring absolvent, I need a capable defender." Harsh words were spoken with no change in his voice.

Takahi felt a twinge at the jab. Brutal honesty was rarely her choice for dealing with people, and while Sashinami wasn't high on her list of favorites, she wouldn't have dished it out like that. But neither was she going to defend her.

Sashinami was taken aback for a second, but predictably remained stubborn. "I can defend! I should be the one to do it—it's not…" She trailed of, for once considering her wording.

"No one should throw their life into a gamble like that. I didn't know what it was at the time, but I saw what it did to Haruto, and… I could get those runes by asking someone, so it would not become a burden to anyone else."

Takahi didn't know if she was referring to piloting, feeding or immortality being a burden. She was conflicted on Sashinami's suitability. She was a fast learner, stubborn as hell and willing to throw herself at the task, so she was good choice, no?

Some spiteful part of her hoped Sashinami would pick the job and suffer the consequences.

Immediate pang of conscience followed the thought. Takahi hadn't been close to the late pilot, but she had seen his condition. She could share the way of thinking that the job is horrible for the one taking it.

Mikhail decidedly didn't budge. "I will mark your willingness down, but you still are the fifth candidate until I get enough answers. Ninomiya Takahi, will you pilot or not?"

His focus shifted back on her. Takahi had already forgotten she needed to answer and hadn't thought far. She could feel her lips turning down in doubt.

"I—I can't answer right now, alright? Let me think," she asked him. It was not a decision she wanted to jump straight into, unlike Sashinami did.

"Fine. You have until 1500 hours. Go to your post," he waved her off. Takahi didn't feel like arguing further, and passed Sashinami, who was still standing around, without a glance at her.

The door slid closed behind her, another male student greeting her in the room. She nodded at him and took a sip from her coffee cup. It had gone too lukewarm for her taste.

* * *

Saki felt more refreshed than she had in a while. A long bath had relaxed her tense muscles and given her time to actually think, away from the chatter of her schoolmates.

Not that there was a lot of chatter – it had been two days since the funeral and the start of a so called Empire. The mood was still somber and made interaction with others heavy, at least in Saki's opinion. She had opted to enter the public bath of the dormitory building after everyone else to avoid others. Sure, she could keep up an icy façade of the practiced actress she was, but it was exhausting. This way she could keep clear head.

Since Saki was a pilot, together with Akira-chan she had been named a Knight. Her post included being the leader of the Knights in a same sense the Unit I had been. _New pilot is a work in progress_ was Mikhail's tight-lipped answer to any enquiries about Unit I. Therefore defense fell to the two Knights and to students who worked in shifts in the control center of the module. In a brief conversation with Mikhail all she had gotten out was that she was to expect a mission soon.

Saki sighed and laid on the lower bed of the bunk, glad in casual sleepwear. She had kept herself busy by doing repairs together with multiple people. She suspected Mikhail had appointed shifts to that job too, since different students came and went along time, taking over others' work. Akira-chan had helped her to get her unit's communications back online, but after that Saki hadn't seen her.

Saki admitted to herself she missed the company of another pilot. While it seemed that nobody was instigating an outright witch hunt for the immortal ones, she still got funny looks from few of the students who were assigned to work with Carmilla. Then again getting herself set against everyone was a frequent event, but now there was supposed to be a safety net to fall on. There would have been, had all the pilots been alive.

Thinking of the dead pilots made her heart ache. Shouting at Shoko-san and repairing Carmilla had brought her momentary relief, but tiredness dominated her mood. Saki took solace in things like long baths and sleep whenever she got it. Thank whatever that was watching over them for the silent period of late. It meant Saki didn't need to run about trying to defend the place and it left her time to think, such as this moment. She had ensured her dormitory room remained private and hadn't sought a roommate to fill the empty upper bunk bed.

A buzz interrupted her. Saki recognized her phone's vibration notification for a message, and slowly she rose from the bed to retrieve her phone from where it rested on a table across her room.

It was a message from Akira-chan. She was rooming with Shoko-san, and unsurprisingly found it easier to communicate via online methods rather than face to face.

_We've got a mission tomorrow when your unit is ready, dunno what tho ( >o<)_

Saki's face fell into a confused frown - Dear Emperor was willing to risk their defense by tasking both Valvraves with this mysterious mission. Knowing him, he must have something up his sleeve or the benefits of the mission outweighed the risk. It meant more work for her and Akira-chan, requiring them to perform their duties with effort and precision they haven't needed before as much.

Feeling the stress creeping up on her once again made Saki sigh again with frustration. She let herself fall on her bed with a big "whomp" and held her phone over her head to type a reply.

_I really want a smoothie now. Or a drink. Or both!_

Not a moment went by before her phone buzzed again.

_Me too... mix them? ^y^_

_Please don't tell me that was a food combo recommendation from Shoko-san._

* * *

"This is the  _Wolf_ , your target," Mikhail swiped his finger across the table with a graphical interface to bring an image of a white-red cargo space ship into focus. Around the table stood the two Knights, who weren't in their piloting suits yet. Next to them were all the students whose job was to monitor and instruct the Knights in the control room – Midori-san with two other females and one male student. Akira wished she remembered their names.

"It will be accompanied by a Walkit-class cruiser. That cruiser will be armed and it will contain mobile enemy units, since this supply line is regularly attacked by ARUS. My contact might have managed to lessen the military presence, but go in assuming you will have full-on resistance."

Akira pursed her lips. It was their first mission after the catastrophe, and uneasiness ate at her stomach. They were running straight into the enemy when they haven't had bothered the module for three days.

Along that fear was steadily growing anger. She was going against those who had taken precocious people from beside her. Akira had to admit payback was an appealing aspect of the mission.

Rukino-san, standing next to her, seemed just as tense, and seemed to have more than light anger lurking behind her eyes. The ice queen act certainly fit her now. Her rigidness did nothing to ease Akira's own mood.

"Rukino, you will first act as a distraction, flying in faster than Renbokoji," Mikhail instructed. "Their radar will detect you, but they aren't expecting any Valvraves. Dodge whatever they throw at you and do a hit-and-run attack at the Walkit cruiser. Try to hit hangar doors or outward weapon systems, and take their attention to yourself.

"Renbokoji's primary objective is to acquire control of the cargo ship, flanking from the blind side of the Walkit." The cargo ship in question wasn't the largest Akira had seen. Mikhail pointed to a part of the ship in the image and continued: "Hitting here will enable you to hack the controls. Put it on autopilot towards the module and disengage as fast as you can. Cover Rukino and both of you will retreat along the cargo ship. Don't worry about the people on board – they are just civilians, normal procedure for them is to evacuate the ship in an emergency."

"…what about those runes?"

All the occupants of the room turned their gazes at Akira, who felt her throat lock up. Years of isolation showed in these kind of situations, when she felt unsure of articulating herself and calling for attention. To her small relief, her voice was quiet, but not wavering.

She had to take small steps, such as being present here in the briefing and not just following from inside her unit. To make eye contact with at least few people, besides her friends and her brother.

Now Akira was (at least she hoped) looking a lot more like a person with actual resolution and cause, not like a bullied introverted kid. Mikhail of all people placed trust in her. She would try and do the same.

"It's been taken care of," Mikhail assured them.

Which was weird. There was no new pilot and the Knights hadn't done anything to supply runes. Akira shared a glance with Rukino-san, who had an equally dismayed expression.

"What does that mean? I really would like to know if I'm going to lose memories out there," Rukino-san turned to slightly scowl at Mikhail.

Akira shared the sentiment. She bit her lower lip and glanced nervously between Mikhail and other people in the room. They also were watching their leader expectantly.

"There is a new pilot. She is only stepping up if it looks like you are going to be followed by Dorssian reinforcements, but the chances of that happening is below 15 percent," he explained.

"Then who is it?" Rukino-san was just as impatient as Akira.

Mikhail's lips curled in a small smirk. "Your sempai, Ninomiya Takahi. Please get along with her."

Akira was surprised. She wasn't close to Ninomiya-san and knew about her through her brother, but she was in the opinion that her pompous persona wasn't exactly easiest to get along with. Was she only good choice left? Surprising was also that she had agreed to take "the blessing".

Rukino-san was also baffled, but after a moment of confusion she schooled her expression back to cool contempt. She also seemed to restrain herself from voicing her opinion, from what Akira could observe.

Seemingly Mikhail was expecting an outburst, but when it did not come, he went back to business. "This is the route the fleet follows." A map appeared on the table, with one point marked. "This is where you intercept them. It is farthest away from any known patrol route, meaning you are safe if you are quick. Any questions?"

The people remained silent, which Mikhail took as a no. "You have 24 minutes until launch. Go to your positions and get ready."

"C'mon," Rukino-san took a light hold of Akira's right arm and tugged her towards the door. Akira followed, guessing they were going to the locker room to change their outfits.

Her arm was let go when they exited the command room. Rukino-san wasn't looking at her and went forward like she was in thought or pre-occupied with something. Akira didn't know how to read people well, but Rukino-san managed to do it even more difficult now.

Few corridors and stairs later they reached their destination. Rukino-san used the command panel next to the door to open the lock in it. The door opened to reveal Ninomiya-san struggling with the front zipper of her pale turquoise suit. She was just as surprised as Akira was.

"Thank God! Help me with this, it won't go up anymore!"

While a more-than-modestly-busted girl fighting against a stubborn zipper was normally a comical sight, Akira was acutely aware of Rukino-san tightening her hands into fists and visibly bristling.

"Are you insane? Are you aware of what you're getting into?"

Ninomiya-san's face fell. "Why are you so angry? I already got this tirade from Satomi, I don't need  _you_ butting in."

Rukino-san looked frustrated at this. "Because you do know that if step into that machine, you are going to throw your humanity away, just like that!"

The admission shocked Akira. Not because Rukino-san was referring to her as something not human, but because of this pessimistic view. Akira had thought Rukino-san actively embraced the fact she was  _Novus_  and not merely  _Homo Sapiens._

Ninomiya-san didn't take kindly to the meddling. "Don't get so haughty! I'm the one who has to do the stuff like feeding!" She scoffed, straightening her back and glaring at Rukino-san. "Besides, I know what I'm doing. I'm not throwing anything away. I'm taking up a job only I'm capable of doing."

Akira didn't know if she should try and stop them before they escalated into a full-blown fight. Ninomiya wasn't the first one Akira would have nominated as a pilot, but she did have enough sense to take this seriously, it seemed.

"The fact that you are treating it as a job tells me enough," Rukino-san replied with cool tone and moved to her locker, now decidedly ignoring them both. Akira shifted nervously in her place, following her example.

From her corner of the eye Akira saw Ninomiya-san staring at Rukino-san's back silently, until she lowered her gaze at the floor.

"…I looked up to you, Rukino. All the pilots. I still do."

Rukino-san stilled, but didn't turn around. Akira held her breath.

"I don't—I don't want to be a plaything for aliens and then watch everyone around us die," she voiced uncharacteristically softly. "Mikhail asked me to. I'm done with sitting around."

At this, she zipped her suit fully up, picked up her helmet and quietly walked out of the door leading to the hangar.

Akira glanced warily at her friend, who was still. She couldn't see her face, but her shoulders were tense. A moment passed before she started moving again, methodically changing her clothes without a word.

Witnessing this exchange was somewhat of an eye-opener to Akira. She knew, in the back of her mind, that Rukino-san was an actress. She could put up a wall displaying what others wanted to see, so that even her friends could be deceived. At least Akira liked to think they were friends, since they had something very rare in common. But to think this was her belief when it came to immortality… it didn't fit in Akira's mind.

On autopilot she changed into her purple suit. When she was ready, she turned to find subdued Rukino-san waiting for her. Together they made their way to their Valvraves in silence.

* * *

A day earlier, the common room of the girl's dormitory building was empty save for Takahi, who was poking at her unappetizing lunch of rice and steamed vegetables. She knew she could eat together with others in the yard, where Sashinami was trying to raise the mood by grilling fish and chicken scavenged from convenience store freezers. But she required a moment of peace.

To think she was even considering piloting was a shock to herself. Takahi wouldn't have thought much about saying no to something as crazy and dangerous before the whole mess happened. Now she was sitting slumped and trying to piece her jumbled thoughts together.

Immortality was a thing with pros and cons – worst of cons being outliving her family and friends. Her friends had a chance of going immortal themselves, but her family was a thing she would have to watch fade away. If she ever got to meet them again, as she was basically confined to the module.

Mikhail had said her piloting skill – in theory, at least – was top-notch. How well Takahi could do it in practice was a whole another question, and not something she would try and find out while being under fire from Dorssia or ARUS. She had respect for the current and former pilots, and even though they were forced to do it, they performed fantastically in her opinion.

And fighting, even if she wouldn't die easily, was something scary.

But her biggest deterrent was the whole feeding thing. Jacking bodies sounded fun, but to fuel themselves like vampires was just disturbing and icky. In hindsight, she now understood the bouts of aggressiveness Tokishima went through. Losing control like that was obviously a huge con. On top of everything, she had seen the prejudice towards the pilots faced. Going berserk wouldn't win points from the people.

She understood she wouldn't be picked as the leader of the Knights. Mikhail wasn't so crazy. That job would go to Rukino. Taking orders went against Takahi's pride and would, no doubt, later come up and them all in the ass. Much less she liked taking those orders from  _Rukino_ of all people. The distaste made Takahi frown, as if her untouched lunch had offended her.

"Ah, Ninomiya-san!"

Takahi was jumbled out of her thoughts with the appearance of Nanami-sensei, who stumbled in from the door leading outside, carrying a large stack of clean sheets.

"What are you doing, eating here by yourself?" she asked, worry – and stress – evident on her face. Her appearance was generally untidy, as if she was too busy to take care of herself.

"Nothing wrong being alone, once in a while." Takahi knew she had taken a bit too long to answer.

Nanami-sensei, being ever so empathetic, picked it up immediately. She set the sheets down on a large armchair and came over to Takahi, taking a seat in front of her.

"Now, I'm not officially a teacher – or I never was, but I can't say I'm one now when you all are…" she gestured vaguely, searching for words. "I'm not your mentor, as much as I wanted to be. It's not really an option now, right?" She asked with hints of nervous laughter. "I'm trying to say that I am here. If you have anything you would like to talk about, I'm here and I will listen to you."

Takahi knew she was being goaded into opening up. The thought was appealing, but at the same time she knew this was something she wasn't supposed to share. It had been strongly implied in her latest confrontation with Mikhail.

She set her chopsticks next to her bowl of rice and kept her gaze low.

Maybe she could look for advice without giving too much information up.

"Do you miss your home, sensei?"

The teacher didn't seem surprised. "Of course I do," she admitted readily. "I want to see my family. I know they are alright, but I haven't seen them in months," she continued, looking a bit somber.

Takahi shared the sentiment. She missed her mother and their occasional shopping trips. Her father, who was almost always busy with work, but still made time to teach her some different handicrafts. She had few origami decorating her bookshelf in her room, and the art of making those she had learned from her dad.

The Wired was useful, but she wanted to  _see_ them.

Nanami-sensei smiled at her softly. "I know it's hard. You should call them if you feel homesick, I'm sure they would like it too."

Takahi bit her lip, contemplating her choices and her words.

"I'm about to do something stupid and I'm not sure if they approve of it, or want it to happen to me," she confessed.

Nanami-sensei's expression was one of confusion. "Something stupid?" She leaned back on her chair and looked upwards, frowning thoughtfully. "Well… do  _you_  think you shouldn't do it?"

"I don't know!" Takahi scoffed in frustration. "I was asked to. The more I think about it the more confused I feel," she hung her head.

The teacher didn't seem fazed by Takahi's answer. "Do you feel compelled to do… whatever it is you were asked to do?"

Compelled? In a way, it was her duty as a citizen of this parody of an empire to defend it. She wasn't the only one who could do it. One of the best candidates maybe, but not the only option.

But did she  _feel_  compelled? Yes.

"A bit," Takahi answered finally.

Nanami-sensei nodded. "And do you think it would be right to do it?"

 _There was nothing right about anything here_ , was her first bitter thought. But was it right for her to climb into Valvrave and be the nearly undying source of fuel for all the machines?

Takahi straightened up. Why wouldn't it be? All the students could do it, but she was among top ten choices, wasn't she? If she did it, she would be a defender. Someone who didn't need shying away, but who would stop their enemy from taking any more lives. Any more of her friends. Any more of her unlikely new family.

"Yes."


End file.
